


Pretty Lies

by Spicysauce



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Angst and Feels, Blood and Injury, Broken Bones, Emotional Baggage, F/M, Flash Thompson Bullies Peter Parker, Flash Thompson Redemption, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Guns, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, Jealous Peter Parker, M/M, Michelle Jones Is a Good Bro, Minor Character Death, Ned Leeds is a Good Bro, Nightmares, Peter Parker Has Panic Attacks, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Peter Parker has PTSD, Precious Peter Parker, Sensory Overload, Swearing, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, i really put them through it in this one, sorry in advance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:14:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 43,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27690548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spicysauce/pseuds/Spicysauce
Summary: A deadly virus that turns it's victims into raging zombies, known as 'Growlers', has swept across Queens, leaving few survivors. As it spreads across the rest of the world, Peter and his friends have to fight tooth and nail in search for a safety zone before it's too late and the sickness takes them too.Peter has lost contact with Mr Stark, the man he relies on more than anyone, and knows it's his responsibility to keep those he loves safe.Whatever it takes.***Or, a zombie apocalypse AU, featuring our favourite trio, a lot of Peter whump, and a good dose of Irondad! (I promise the story is better than this summary.)**COMPLETED**
Relationships: May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones & Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones/Peter Parker, Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Avengers Team, Peter Parker & Flash Thompson, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 77
Kudos: 236
Collections: The Best Irondad/Spiderson Fics, The Best Peter Parker Whump Fics, The Best of the Best MCU Fics, the avengers fics





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! A couple of things to note:  
> 1\. Civil war didn't happen, but homecoming and Mysterio did.  
> 2\. Peter and his friends are seventeen.  
> 3\. Michelle and Peter haven't kissed yet.  
> 4\. I'm British and I've tried my best to only use American terms, but I may have missed out a few by accident.
> 
> Enjoy! :))

_Fear_. Suffocating, heart stopping fear. It spread through his veins like sticky syrup, attaching itself to each muscle, each nerve till he could barely breathe, the pressure in his head begging to be realised as adrenaline flooded his system. 

He stared the _thing_ dead in the eyes. Those cold, empty eyes. Without thinking, Peter flung his arm out to the side, latching onto the warm hand he found, letting the familiar touch ground him and bring him back to reality. They needed to run.

The thought slammed into him like a punch to the stomach, his feet already stumbling back and thumping across the concrete as he sprinted across the open road. Despite the sweat collecting across his palms, he kept a tight grip on the hand he had grabbed, only glancing back briefly to check they were keeping up okay. 

Big mistake. When he turned back, he caught the eye of the _thing_ that was tearing its way across the street, its emotions reduced to nothing but hatred and aggression. And it was getting closer, its haggard arms flying out in different directions to latch onto any body parts. The panic in his chest only grew and he pushed his legs to go faster, ignoring the yelp from behind him at the sudden increase in speed.

In that moment, Peter could feel nothing but the pounding in his head and the burning in his muscles. They ran for what felt like a lifetime, the realisation sinking in that from now on they would never stop being afraid and no matter how hard they tried to get away from this new life of horror, they would never stop running.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One day earlier:

“- and then you swooped in and I was like “look out!” and you like did an awesome flip out the way and then you were like bam bam pow and I was like “woahhhh” and then you were like - “

Peter chuckled fondly as an excited Ned rambled on about the different escapades they had been on in last nights patrol. As Peters ‘Guy in the Chair’, Ned looked forward to each evening where he could throw on his headset, prepare a selection of snacks to munch and help Spiderman fight crime. Peter also loved this new routine they had going, finding that hearing Neds voice in his ear calmed him in intense situations, and having technological backup was surprisingly helpful.

“Sup’, losers.” Peter jolted like a gunshot had been fired as he whirled around to see Michelle Jones standing behind him, a large book in hand and a bored expression etched onto her face. She quirked an eyebrow at his dramatic reaction and Peter shrunk back into his seat a little more, feeling the tips of his ears grow red. 

“I thought you had a Peter-tingle thing that warned you of stuff like that.” Michelle said as she sat down across from the pair.

“Well, yeah, I do but that’s only from dangerous stuff. And _please_ , for my sanity, stop calling it my Peter tingle. That just sounds weird.” Peter scrunched his nose and returned to his sandwich.

Ned laughed and shook his head. “No way, dude, we are never gonna’ drop it.” 

Michelle hid a smirk and stuck her head back into her book, pretending that she was uninterested when really, she enjoyed the company of the two nerds. Finding out that she was right in her suspicions about Peter and Spiderman shocked her more than she liked to admit. But after a few weeks of spending more time with the pair, she found it made little difference to their whole friendship dynamic as Peter was still the same, kind science geek he had always been. Okay, so maybe she liked him a little too much, but she would never admit that.

“Oh, I heard that XKL virus has started to spread through Canada. Its kind of freaking me out.” Ned said, looking down at a news article on his phone.

Peter perked up at the new information. He first heard about the XKL ‘zombie’ virus only a few days, but he didn’t know how much of it he believed was true. According to google (which he had learned wasn’t very reliable), the virus had started out in Russia where an organisation was trying to replicate the super soldier serum and it went a bit wrong. Well, ‘bit wrong’ was an understatement, as the disease supposedly transformed you into a flesh-eating zombie if you were scratched like in all the movies. It seemed a bit too cliché.

Still, it had been popping up on the news and social media nonstop throughout the past few days and it admittedly was a little worrying. He had even seen a blurry picture of one on Instagram, but Peter didn’t pay too much attention to it as it looked edited. The Russian guy who had snapped the photo dubbed the zombie a ‘Growler’, and after the picture went viral the name kind of stuck. Peter tried not to let the news bother him too much, it wasn’t like the virus had spread to America yet.

After a few more minutes of science arguments and Spiderman related chatter, the bell rang signalling the end of lunch. Peter groaned and dropped his head to the table with a thud, knowing they had another Spanish quiz next period that he was definitely not prepared for. Ned had a similar reaction as he slapped a hand across his face and blew out a long breath.

“You two are so dramatic.” Michelle dead panned as she stuffed her things into her backpack.

“That’s easy for you to say, you don’t have a Spanish quiz next!” Ned was quick to defend himself.

“And Mr Harrington said it would last the whole hour!” Peter added, the temptation to escape out a window and swing through the city increasing.

“In a few hundred years your whole life will be meaningless and none of these problems will matter.” Michelle replied.

Ned and Peter paused to stare at her confused. “Sometimes I wonder what’s going on inside your head.” 

Michelle shrugged and started to walk to class, not checking to see if the others were following her (she knew they would be).

Peter trudged behind her, half listening to Ned babbling on about the Avengers and half thinking about how pretty the messy curls in Michelle’s hair looked as they fell effortlessly past her shoulders. He was almost at his class when he felt a harsh hand on his shoulder, pushing him to the side so he roughly collided with the row of lockers.

“Hey, Penis!” Flash bellowed, his yelling making most of the people around them either scamper away or turn to see the commotion. Peter let out a frustrated sigh and turned towards the bully.

“Hi, Flash.” He mumbled quietly. 

“How is that fake internship of yours going?” Flash sneered, making sure he was loud enough for the people around him to hear. “You do realise Mr Stark would never want to be around a nobody like you!” Peter cast his gaze down to his shoes, assuming it would be better to say nothing.

“You’re just jealous that Ironman chose Peter over you!” Ned said before Flash could say anything else. 

“Looks like Peter needs his pathetic boyfriend to protect him!” Flash laughed. Anger rose in Peter at the comment and within a split second he decided that Flash could bully him as much as he wanted, but Ned was off limits. 

Just as Flash took a step closer to a shrinking Ned, Peter lightly shoved him on the shoulder. “Leave him alone, man.”

Flash’s cheeks coloured red as the crowd around them laughed. “You suddenly getting brave, Penis?”

“No, I’d just rather get to class than spend any more time humouring you.” That was apparently the wrong thing to say as, before he even had time to think, a fist to his face had Peter’s whole body snapping to the side, pain blossoming across his left cheek. A chorus of gasps and yells broke out from the crowd, excited at the idea of seeing a fight. 

Peter stumbled a bit but straightened back up, embarrassment overriding pain. He was moments from walking away to avoid any more potential fighting when Flash grabbed him by the collar of his science shirt and pushed him back, pinning him to the lockers. Of course, Peter could have easily gotten out of this situation but right now he was just weak Peter Parker, not Spiderman who could lift a bus with his bare hands.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Michelle among the many watching faces, a thin line of concern creased onto her forehead. He also noticed the other students suddenly backing away and fleeing into different classes as their head teacher spotted the commotion and came charging over.

“Hey!” Principle Morita shouted as he neared the school children. The group had dispersed so quickly that the only people that remained were Peter, Ned, Michelle and Flash, who had now dropped and stepped away from Peter. “All of you. Detention after school” His tone left room for no argument, so the four of them reluctantly traipsed down the hall to class.

Peter let out another groan as he remembered it was Friday, which meant he would have to skip lab day with Mr Stark. He reached into his pocket and took out his Stark phone, briefly smiling at the picture on his lock screen of him and Ned posing with the finished Lego death star and clicked Mr Starks contact.

**Spiderling: Hi Mr stark! I’m really sorry but I cant come to the tower today because I got detention ☹**

He was about to switch his phone back off when it vibrated with a message.

**Mr Stark: That’s too bad, Underoos. How’d you manage to get detention?**

**Spiderling: A dude from my school punched ME in the face but I STILL go detention!!! This is so unfair.**

**Mr Stark: Do I need to speak to anyone’s parents?**

**Spiderling: No!! I have it under control.**

**Mr Stark: Hmm sure you do. Want to come to the tower at the weekend instead?**

**Spiderling: Yes yes yes! That would be so awesome!!!**

**Mr Stark: Make sure you ask Aunt Hottie first. She scares me.**

**Spiderling: Mr Stark I told you to stop calling her tat! It’s gross. But I will.**

**Mr Stark: See you then, Kid.**

A wide smile spread across Peters face as he felt his mood significantly rising, before he switched off his phone and turned into class. Peter didn’t really know what the relationship was between him and Mr Stark. After the traumatic events of homecoming, going to space and dying, seeing Mr Stark almost die and the whole fiasco of Europe and Mysterio, the two had gotten a lot closer. Peter went to the tower every Wednesday and Friday, sometimes even spending the night and he found comfort in the older man. It seemed that after the shitshow of the last two years, things were finally starting to look up for Peter.

Peter dropped his backpack to the floor and took a seat next to Ned and Michelle in the room they held detentions. Michelle already had her sketch book in hand and for a moment Peter sat and stared intently at her delicate hands and the way she dragged her pencil back and forth across the page in perfect strokes. 

“Stop staring.” Michelle said without even glancing up from her page. _Creepy_. Peters head snapped to the side a he mumbled out an apology. God, he really needed to learn to play it cool.

Unsurprisingly, Flash didn’t show up, no doubt due to his father threatening to pull his funds from the school to get his son out of trouble. Peter sank further into his plastic chair and stretched his back out as he tried to get into a more comfortable position. It was going to be a very long two hours.

A teacher Peter didn’t recognise walked into the room, barely batting an eye at the three students sitting down. Peter could hear the loud clicking of her fake, overly long nails against the keyboard as she got up one of Captain America’s PSAs. He chuckled to himself at the fact he had actually met Mr Rogers on multiple occasions and had a real conversation with the amazing man, even though it was full of embarrassing rambling on his part.

The teacher quickly left the room, again not speaking or looking at the three. Peter was pretty sure she was supposed to be supervising them, but he wasn’t complaining – the time would go a lot quicker if they didn’t have to sit in silence. 

“I can’t believe Flash hits _you_ but _we_ get detention. This is an injustice!” Ned sighed dramatically.

“I know right! I’m sorry you guys got caught up in this.” Peter replied, still feeling a little guilty when the ‘fight’ was between Flash and him.

“It’s not your fault Flash is a dipshit. Besides, things could be worse.” Michelle said. Ned nodded his head in agreement.

They sat like that for about an hour, Michelle sketching and adding the occasional comment when necessary while Peter and Ned started to map out how they were going to build their next Legos construction. 

“– but according to the law of physics if we use the larger pieces to build the base then it will – “

Ned was interrupted when the sound of Captain Americas voice suddenly cut out and was replaced with a loud TV static. The three turned their heads to the screen as a new image started to flicker into view. It looked like an ordinary news reporter, and Peter was about to turn back to Ned assuming it was a mistake when he was cut off.

“There is a national emergency. I repeat, there is a national emergency.” The three shared confused looks for a moment before turning their attention back to the screen. “The XKL virus is rapidly spreading through America. It appears to have already taken 8.9% of the population of Queens where there has been a rapid breakout. It has been declared as a national emergency. Everyone must evacuate their homes and report to the safety zone that is closest to them. Children in schools or at day cares must remained quarantined and wait for a coach to take them to a zone. Parents should not pick up their child. It is highly contagious. I repeat, it is highly contagious.”

Peter hadn’t realised that he was now standing, edging closer to the screen as he felt his heart thumping almost painfully against his ribcage,

“What the hell?” Ned whispered, more to himself than anyone.

“If you encounter a victim of the XKL disease, otherwise known as a Growler, you must kill them without mercy. They are no longer alive, just a shell holding a killing machine. The Growlers will try to kill you. I repeat, the Growlers will try to kill you.”

The voice of the news reported was drowned out by the flooding in Peters ears. He struggled to comprehend all the new information and found himself stumbling back under the weight of this new fear. In the back of his mind he registered Ned gripping and shaking his arm tightly and could just make out tears prickling the corner of his friend’s eyes. He wanted to comfort him but found his body wasn’t cooperating with him, his legs moving forward and out of the classroom instead. Teachers and Staff were running around him, making too much noise and felt the flooding in his ears start to decrease as it was replaced with stomping an yelling. 

The building was in panic, meaning they had all heard the same message, meaning this was happening, meaning they were in danger.

Finally, once out of his dissociative state, his eyes darted around for Ned and Michelle and he felt himself release a breath he didn’t realise he was holding when he spotted them at the doorway.

“Holy crap.” Peter breathed out.

“What do we do?” Ned said, his voice raising an octave

“We do what they said. We wait for a coach to pick us up, and we go to a safety camp.” Though Michelle was definitely the most calm out of the three, the slight edge of worry in her voice made Peter panic even more. “They have safety measures in place for this. They were prepared for this.”

“When they said 8.9% of Queens has been taken by the virus, dos that mean…?” Ned didn’t want to finish his question because he knew the answer and it was too painful to comprehend.

“That doesn’t mean that they are… that they…” Peter was trying to be optimistic, he really was, but it was getting pretty damn hard.

“It means they are dead.” Michelle said flatly, ever the honest one.

Three stood in silence for a moment, ignoring the panicked yelling from staff as they continued to run around the building.

Peter pulled out his phone as the others did the same, praying that May was okay and not wasting a second in scrolling to her contact. He listened intently as the phone buzzed. Once. Twice. Three times. He was getting scared now. Four times

“Peter?” Her voice cut through the fifth buzz, rushed and anxious, but alive. Peter almost cried of joy on the spot.

“May! Oh my god! I'm so glad you are okay! What’s happening?” He knew he was rambling but couldn’t seem to stop himself.

“Peter, honey, I’ve been so worried about you. I’m at the hospital there have been a rush of new patients. It looks like I'm going to be transferred to the Queens safety zone within the hour.”

“What? What do I do?” Peter said hurriedly.

“It’s okay, sweetie, a coach should be coming to collect you soon and I'll see you at the base. It would be more dangerous for me to come get you I'm afraid.”

“What do you mean more dangerous?”

“The Growlers are dangerous and they are all over the streets already. You mustn't leave the school building! And Peter, promise me that if you see a Growler you will not hesitate to kill it.”

“May I – “

“Promise me, Peter! I can’t bare to lose you too.” The emotion in her voice was so raw; Peter could barely manage to hear her like this.

Peter sucked in a breath. “Okay. I promise.”

“I love you so much sweetie, but I have to go. Stay safe.”

“I love you too.” Peter replied but the phone had already cut out. For the second time he felt frozen, shell shocked. He wiped a hand across his cheek to get rid of the stray tear that had escaped and turned back to his friends who also seemed to be finishing up with their phone calls.

For the next three hours, they sat alone in an empty classroom, barely speaking a word. They were too caught up in their thoughts to barely notice each other let alone engage in a conversation. The coach that was supposed to collect them still hadn’t arrived, but that was unsurprising considering the amount of traffic there must be when a whole city tries to evacuate. 

The building had become a lot quieter, so much so it was almost eerie considering how much noise there had been only a few hours ago. Most had run within the first hour, hopping in their cars in a hope to outrun the virus presumably, and hadn’t even noticed they were there. Peter hadn’t noticed any other children either, but that was probably because it was after school and there weren’t many clubs on a Friday.

Peters phone rang, the stupid ringtone him and Ned had chosen echoing through the classroom. He wasted no time in swiping across the screen, feeling his muscles relax a little when he was saw it was Mr stark. They had briefly talked earlier, just to confirm they were safe but Mr Stark had to go due to the mountain of calls he was receiving.

“Mr Stark!”

“Hey, kid. Still no coach?” He could hear the stress and exhaustion in the mans voice.

“Nope. I’m not convinced they are coming.”

“If they don’t, I'll come get you myself.”

“Mr Stark you can’t! Its too dangerous here in Queens!” Peter knew that Tony was still upstate at the Tower, and he didn’t want him to risk his safety just for him.

“Please, I’m Ironman, as if a little zombie could try take down me.” Peter rolled his eyes but found himself smiling anyway. “You just sit tight and don’t worry your pretty little head about it. Ill come rescue you soon.”

“Okay, fine. But just be careful.”

“I’m always careful.” He replied smugly.

“You are not!” Peter said, laughing despite the situation.

“Anyway, I'm a little worried that the power and all the signals across the city are going to cut out soon.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yep, the whole of the USA has gone into chaos, so no one is exactly working at the moment. In fact, I'm surprised it hasn’t already happened.”

“Oh.” Peter didn’t know what else to say.

“Right Petey-pie, looks like I have some more urgent phone calls coming through, you know, billionaire and all.”

“Okay, talk soon Mr stark.”

“See you later. Oh, and Kid?”

“Yeah?”

“Promise me you will stay safe?”

“I promise, Mr Stark.” Damn, he was making a lot of promises today, not all he was sure he going to be able to keep.

“Cath you later, Underoos.” The line went dead.

It was dark outside, the black clouds weaving in and out of each other like a needle and thread amongst the full moon. After hours of sitting slumped in the same plastic chair, Peter finally stood and arched his back to try get a satisfying stretch.

The lights above them suddenly flickered in and out until going out completely, the warm glow of light being replaced by complete darkness. This caught the others attention to as they looked up to the ceiling.

“Shit.” Peter muttered. “Mr stark said the power would probably go out soon.” He switched on his phone, letting the light from the screen illuminate the room a little. “I have no signal either.”

“What do we do? We can’t contact anyone!” Ned said in a hurry.

“It’s fine. We will just sit and wait till the bus gets here. I have super good hearing so I'll be able to hear the engine if it comes by.” Peter reasoned.

“You mean _when_ it comes by, right?” Ned’s palms felt sweaty.

Through the black Peter could just make out Michelle as she bowed her head slightly, also realising that there was a good chance a coach wasn’t coming.

“Let’s go look for some flashlights. There should be some at the technician’s office.” She said instead, her tone a little brighter. Peter nodded and stepped out into the hallway, feeling a sense of dread as he took in the darkness of the halls. He couldn’t help but feel a little frightened, the corridor was completely empty and silent, not to mention how it felt a little too similar to a horror movie him and Ned watched at the weekend.

Swallowing his fear, he tentatively inched down the hall, focusing in on the heartbeats behind him to keep him calm. It struck him how quiet it was. Sure, they had been waiting in that classroom for quite a while, but he didn’t think absolutely everyone would have fled from the building so quickly. Did no one even notice they were still there?

“This place is a lot creepier at night.” Ned said in a hushed tone, even though they seemed to be alone, so he didn’t need to whisper. 

The technician’s office came into view and Peter jiggled the handle, letting out a long breath when the door didn’t budge.

“Err, super strength, remember?” Michelle said mockingly.

“Oh, right!” Peter said with a little laugh, mentally making a note to apologise to the caretaker. He took a couple steps back before ramming his shoulder into the door, making the wood splinter and hinges snap. It gave way easily, letting Peter step through the door, his shoes crunching against broken glass.

He rummaged through each draw, forcing a few open that were locked. He let out sound of achievement when we he found a stash of small flashlights and wasted no time in chucking one to both Ned and Michelle.

It was nearing 9 o’clock, and Peter had still heard no sign of a coach, or any vehicle for that matter. After some aimless wondering around dark halls, Peter broke the lock on a door to a staff room and peered inside. It was a large room with tattered, but comfy-looking couches lining the walls, as well as a fridge and coffee machine at the side.

Peter and Ned wasted no time in flinging themselves onto their own coach, stretching their tired bodies across it. Michelle joined them a few minute later, sandwiches, crisps and water bottles in hand. They sat in a comfortable silence for a little while longer, each of them feeling better after eating some proper food.

Peter didn’t remember falling asleep, but he must have because the next thing he knew he was slowly coming back to awareness, an orange light filtering through his eyelids as he blinked. For a moment, he thought he was back at home, groaning as he reached for a pillow to playfully throw at Aunt May who had no doubt opened the curtains to wake him.

As he blinked and looked around, however, he wasn’t in his bedroom, but rather on a worn out couch, surrounded by wrappers and empty bottles. The memories from the previous day rushed back to him and he groaned again, this time loud enough to stir Ned and Michelle out of their sleep. 

“The coach isn’t coming, is it?” Ned said defeated, staring up at the ceiling.

“No. I don’t think it is.” Michelle said, because there was no point in lying to him.

“Mr Stark will come get us. He will realise soon enough that we didn’t get to the safety zone, and he will pick us up. He knows that we are at the school.” Peter jumped in to say, not wanted to see Ned panic again.

That seemed to satisfy the two as they didn’t say anything, instead preparing themselves for a lot of waiting. 

Before they knew it, another day had passed, and darkness overtook them yet again. Still no coach. Still no Mr Stark. They spent the day exploring the school, mixing up chemicals in the science classrooms and rummaging through cupboards in the lunch hall, doing anything to pass the time. Now that they had gotten over the initial shock of finding out about the chaos of the new world they were trapped in; their conversations were finally starting to go back to normal.

Peter was positive of three things. One, the school was completely empty. If there had been anyone still loitering around the halls, they must have left in the night a he hadn’t heard or seen a single soul all day. Two, there was no way a coach was going to collect them. Chances are no one new they were even at the school. And Three, the most important, Mr Stark was coming for them. He didn’t know when, but he was sure the man would come rescue them. Besides, even thinking that he wasn’t gave him a stomach-ache.

The flashlights were back out as the three sorted through the cupboards in the canteen. It had been a Friday, so most food had been thrown at the end of the day, and everything that wasn’t had already been eaten. Peters stomach grumbled loudly, and he felt his cheeks flush. That was the downside of having a crazy-fast metabolism.

“There is a gas station down the street. We could run over there, grab some food and run back?” Michelle suggested.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? They said we weren’t supposed to leave.”

“I’d normally agree, Ned, but we don’t know how long we will be here and we need to eat. Besides, I doubt anything bad will happen. It’s just down the street.” Peter shrugged.

“Yeah but what about the…” He lowered his voice. “Growlers?”

“Social media likes to blow things out of proportion.” Michelle reasoned. “I doubt the ‘Growlers’ are anything to be afraid of. People probably just gave them that name because anyone who gets sick looks really gross.”

Peter didn’t say anything to add to that, but he hoped it was true. He grabbed his backpack and emptied out the books inside. It wasn’t like he was going to be revising for chemistry any time soon, and he needed the extra space to stuff it with food.

They pushed open the double doors and were met with the eerie view, of the empty carpark. With no streetlamps to provide light it was darker than peter was used to, but thanks to his enhanced vision he didn’t have too much problem seeing.

A brisk jog had them outside the gas station within a few minutes, neither of them wanting to stay out longer than they needed to. Admittedly, it was fun stuffing as much food and treats as he could into his small backpack, not forgetting to cram in a few water bottles and some more batteries for the flashlights. The others did the same and they were ready to jog back to the school when a tingle at the back of Peters neck had him jolting to stop.

Michelle and Ned noticed he had stopped so suddenly and turned to look at him, questioningly. Peter lifted a hand to scratch at the increasing sensation but it didn’t budge, just got more intense till his head was whipping back and forth to figure out what was wrong. The others understood as they said nothing, just stood tensely and waited.

The pressure on his neck was almost unbearable and he wanted to scream in frustration. He was seconds away from ignoring it, blaming it on his lack of food when he saw it. 

_Fear_. Suffocating, heart stopping _fear_. It spread through his veins like sticky syrup, attaching itself to each muscle, each nerve till he could barely breathe, the pressure in his head begging to be realised as adrenaline flooded his system. 

He stared the _thing_ dead in the eyes. Those cold, empty eyes. It staggered where it stood, a few metres away from them. Old blood oozed out of it from every inch of visible skin, it’s limbs mangled and bent out of shape so badly you could see the bones jutting out at different points. Its clothes were shredded and torn, whatever design they had now completely unrecognisable. Peter thought it had been a woman before, based on the matted hair that clung to its face.

He understood now. He understood why May made him promise to kill the Growler before it could kill him, because Peter knew nothing was left of the person it used to be.

Without thinking, Peter flung his arm out to the side, latching onto the warm hand he found, letting Michelle’s familiar touch ground him and bring him back to reality. They needed to run.

The thought slammed into him like a punch to the stomach, his feet already stumbling back and thumping across the concrete as he sprinted across the open road. Despite the sweat collecting across his palms, he kept a tight grip on the hand he had grabbed, only glancing back briefly to check they were keeping up okay. 

Big mistake. When he turned back, he caught the eye of the thing that was tearing its way across the street, its emotions reduced to nothing but hatred and aggression. And it was getting closer, its haggard arms flying out in different directions to latch onto any body part it could. The panic in his chest only grew and he pushed his legs to go faster, faster, ignoring the yelp from behind him at the sudden increase in speed. A cross between an animalistic howl and a low growl echoed across the empty street, and suddenly the name they were given made perfect sense.

He looked to his left and saw more of the violent monsters sprinting their way towards them, and he changed direction as he realised going back to the school was no longer an option.

In that moment, Peter could feel nothing but the pounding in his head and the burning in his muscles. He thought he heard Ned scream at them to keep running, but he could barely hear it over the thumping in his ears. They ran for what felt like a lifetime, the realisation sinking in that from now on they would never stop being afraid and no matter how hard they tried to get away from this new life of horror, they would never stop running.


	2. Chapter 2

Peter looked to his left and saw more of the violent monsters sprinting their way towards them, and he changed direction as he realised going back to the school was no longer an option. He spotted a large grocery store across the street and realised they couldn’t keep this up for much longer.

“Follow me!” He screamed over the terrifying roars, praying that Michelle and Ned understood.

Letting go of Michelle’s hand, he pushed his legs to go faster than ever before, putting a good distance between him and the others. If he could get to the large backdoors of the store quickly, hopefully he could force it open before the Growlers caught up with them. 

As he saw the doors he didn’t slow down, but instead somehow sped up, positioning his shoulder to the side and closing his eyes. He slammed against the metal blue doors, his shoulder screaming in pain but the door barely budging. He could hear the screeching and thunder of footsteps getting closer so he wasted no time in backing up and ploughing into the doors again. They thudded and moved slightly but they seemed to be bolted to the floor. Not good enough.

By the time he had backed up for a second time, Michelle and Ned were running towards him, an army of ferocious Growlers hot on their heels.

“Hurry up!” Michelle yelled, her voice barely audible over the sound of roaring and heaving thumping on the pavement.

Peter lunged forward again, his muscles burning as he took a final, more powerful leap towards the blue doors. He smashed into them, shoulder first, the doors finally giving away and bursting open. Seconds later Ned and Michelle were sprinting through the opening, past Peter. 

He wasted no time in trying to force the heavy doors shut, Michelle helping him with the other.

They were so close. _So_ close. 

One of the Growlers amongst the swarm lunged for Michelle, managing to successfully grip her leg. Michelle let out a surprised yelp as she started to get dragged away. Peter reached forward and took hold of her outstretched arm, holding tight. He sent a fatal kick to the Growler clawing at Michelle making it cry out and fall to the floor. But he had no time to celebrate as before he knew it there were more of the creatures trying to force themselves through the small gap in the door way.

Peter delivered a powerful uppercut to one, while forcing the door completely shut with the other. In a stroke of luck, the door swung shut, severing the foot of one the Growlers and leaving blood splattered across the door. He could still hear the monsters scratching and banging against the metal, but by judging how hard it was to open for him the first time, he was pretty certain it was going to hold. 

He slowly backed up, his whole body sagging in both relief and exhaustion. He forced a few heavy storage boxes up against the metal doors for good measure and turned back around.

Ned was crouched on the floor, throwing up the canteen food they ate earlier and Peter rubbed his back in sympathy. He looked towards Michelle, heart leaping into his throat when he remembered a Growler had grabbed her.

She was lying flat on the floor, her hands rubbing over her face as she gasped in deep breathes. 

“Are you both okay?” Peter said between a fit of coughs, realising that they weren’t enhanced like him, and running that fast was probably taking a toll on their bodies. Ned nodded miserably, still bent over but no longer gagging. 

“Michelle?” He knew they were probably too tired to answer but he needed to know they were both okay.

“I think so.” She said finally, her voice quiet.

“Are you sure? I saw that thing grab you.” Peter moved closer to her and crouched down, pulling up the torn leg of her cargo trousers. 

If not for the fact he was still extremely out of breath, he would have laughed in relief. As he pulled up her left pant leg, he noticed another thick layer of fabric that the Growler’s hands hadn’t managed to tear through.

“I wear multiple layers. Its cold out.” She supplied, still to tired to give any more information.

Roughly twenty minutes later, the Growlers outside had significantly quietened, seeming to have returned to aimlessly wondering around the car park. It was hard to see through the darkness outside, but Peter could just about make out the moving shapes and knew they would have to stay here for a little while. 

Peter had recovered and gained his breathe back after a few minutes, but the pain in his shoulder had turned to a dull throb that was getting harder to ignore. He moved it around a bit, relived that nothing felt broken. 

As Ned and Michelle slowly gained their strength back, Peter tried to busy himself the best he could to avoid thinking about what just happened; he wondered around the dark tore, grabbing blankets and bottles of water for the trio.

At some point they had moved to one of the display beds a few aisles down and pushed a nearby display sofa next to it. Peter went on another food trip as the most energetic of the three, using his torch to shine a light down the aisles. The store was like a warzone, the shelves were half empty and the majority of what remained was scattered across the floor. 

Peter gathered an armful of Cheetos that were leftover, some fruit that still looked fresh and a few pots of tomato pasta. He juggled the assortment of treats in him arms and trudged back over to their den, holding the handle of the flashlight in his mouth. He saw a warm orange glow coming from Ned and Michelle and realised with a smile they had strung fairy lights across the shelves on either side and positioned battery powered lamps across the floor. 

Considering they were in the middle of an abandoned store; it was surprisingly homely. 

“Ta dah!” Ned held out his hands in achievement.

“Wow.” Peter said, chuckling. “This is actually really nice. I bought some food over.”

Michelle patted a spot on the bed next to her in between her and Ned, and Peter emptied the snacks into the middle, sitting cross legged in front of the two 

They sat and talked like they used to. As if they hadn’t been through an extremely traumatic experience and nearly died. As if they weren’t in mortal danger. As if they were still normal teenagers. And it felt good.

A little while later Michelle pushed the wrappers off the bed and stood up. “We should change. We’ve been in these clothes for like 2 days straight and we are starting to smell.” 

Peter shrugged and pushed himself off the bed, his shoulder spiking in pain. He ignored it and followed Michelle to the clothing aisles, grabbing the first pair of jeans he could see. He pushed through the hangars holding the T-Shirts next to Ned, selecting a plain white one in his size, and a large grey hoody with a fluffy inside he found on the side. He headed back with the others to their fairy-light-filled cavern, his eyebrows drawing together when he saw Michelle walking away.

“MJ, where are you going?” he called out.

She turned back with an amused smirk. “You must be insane if you think I’m going to get naked in front of you two!”

Peter choked on his spit and mentally slapped himself for being so stupid. “Oh- right. Yeah, um, of course. Sorry.” He stuttered out, his cheeks turning a tinge darker. Ned said nothing, just stood wide eyed as she continued to walk out of sight.

Ned seemed to snap out of his haze as he began to pull his sweaty shirt over his head and replaced it with the new one. Peter did too, pulling the new pair of blue jeans up his legs. He went to quickly pull his shirt off but froze when he couldn’t contain the yelp that escaped him at the sudden movement. 

Ned noticed and looked at him, concerned. “Dude, are you okay?”

“Yep.” Peter replied too quickly.

“You’re not. Did one of the Growlers get you?”

“No, no, nothing like that. I think I just bruised my shoulder when I forced the doors open earlier.” 

Ned nodded in understanding and moved over to help him manoeuvre the shirt over his head as gently as possible. He hissed at the sight of the blue and purple patches that covered the side of his right arm and shoulder, prodding at the tender bits.

“Ow, dude, stop that.” Peter said as Ned suddenly stopped prodding and muttered a quick apology.

Michelle emerged from an isle wearing the new clean clothes, freezing when she saw Peter shirtless. She must have made a sound because suddenly Peters head snapped towards her and the blush that crept up his neck was immediate as he turned away.

Michelle rolled her eyes at his shyness and carried on towards the boys, wincing when she saw the big bruise across his side. 

“Jeez, did you get hit by a train or something? Again?” She said playfully, hoping to make him feel a little less self-conscious.

“Ha-ha very funny. You’re welcome, by the way.” He said grumpily, but Michelle could see a slight smirk on his lips.

“I’ll get you come ice.” She said, already turning away.

“MJ, you don’t have to it’s really not that bad.”

“Shut-up, Parker. You saved our asses so at least let us take care of you.” She didn’t turn back, just kept strolling towards the freezer aisle. She flipped open a lid of one of the freezer cabinets and pulled out a bag of ice, groaning when she realised it had completely melted and was just a bag of water, which wasn’t surprising considering the power went out yesterday. Instead she picked a couple of hand warmers off the shelf on her way back and walked back to the boys. 

The sound of music filled her ears and she couldn’t help the smile that lit up her face as she saw Ned and Peter swaying back and forth together, surprisingly in time with the gentle beat. She recognised the song as ‘Baby I’m Yours’ by the Arctic Monkey and realised they probably had the song downloaded.

Peter spotted her off to the side and grinned, taking a bow and extending a hand towards her in a gentlemanly fashion. Any other time she would have rejected him without thinking twice, since dancing wasn’t really her thing, but just looking at the way his eyes twinkled in the soft glow made her give in.

“You know, slow dancing does nothing but force young people to conform to normative gender roles, not to mention how it is extremely crin – “

“Oh, shut up and come here.” Peter said, taking her hand and pulling her into a clumsy spin, grinning when she couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her. He held her hands tightly, forcing her to move back and forth as he attempted to deepen his voice and sing the low notes, making her laugh even more. 

Ned joined them, and soon they were all holding hands and swaying around or showing off their terrible dance moves in-between giggles, none of them caring that their sense of rhythm was totally lost.

_Baby, I’m yours  
‘Till the stars fall from the sky_

For a moment peter wondered what they all looked like. The world was ending, the apocalypse had begun. Yet here they were, in their own tiny corner of the world, dancing like their whole reality was just one long fever dream. 

_Baby, I’m yours  
‘Till the rivers all run dry_

For a moment he soaked in the feeling off true happiness, knowing that soon they would be running again, and these memories needed to be saved. He closed his eyes, smiling at the feeling of the warm light on his face, the sound of laughter beside him, the sensation of comforting hands in his. He could hear the track beginning to fade out and knew they didn’t have long left.

_Baby, I’m yours  
‘Till the sun no longer shines_

For a moment he found himself wishing that everything in the world apart from them would stop, so he could stay in this pocket of time forever. But the song was nearly over, and he knew that couldn’t happen.

_Baby, I’m yours  
‘til the poets run out of rhyme_

And then the moment ended. 

The others must have felt the same because a heavy silence washed over them as they stood, the absence of the song leaving an untreatable ache.

“It’s pretty late. We should probably get some sleep.” Peter said, his features glowing in the warmth of the fairy lights.

Michelle nodded in agreement and tossed him the hand warmers before climbing into the bed. She pulled the covers over her shivering body and let herself relax into the comfort of the luxurious covers. Ned had already claimed the sofa and she could hear quiet snoring within minutes. Hearing Peter shuffle about beside her, she peeked open an eye to see him laying out a blanket and pillow across the marble floor. Did he really think she was going to make him sleep on the floor?

“Hey, Loser, get up here.” She whispered as to not wake Ned.

“What? – uh, are you sure?” He whispered back.

“Of course, I’m sure, dipshit.” She said rolling her eyes.

“Um, o-okay then.” He gingerly clambered onto the bed, lying down as far from her as possible to give her space. 

“Peter?” Michelle stared at the ceiling and pulled the covers up to her chin.

“Yeah?” He replied quickly, giving her a quick side-eye.

“What are we going to do?” Michelle didn’t like to sound vulnerable - or show any emotion for that matter. But laying here with Peter, feeling the warmth of his body and hearing his long deep breathes, she finally felt like she could be herself. She knew Peter. Peter was safe.

“I don’t know.” Peter whispered back, and he sounded so emotionally drained that she almost took his hand in hers but stopped at the last moment. Michelle Jones didn’t do touchy feelings, or pretty lies, or comforting gestures. She had never wanted to do or be any of those things. What was Peter doing to her?

They lay in silence for a little while longer, despite both being wide awake.

“MJ?” Peter whispered suddenly.

“Yeah?” She replied.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you or Ned. I promise.” He didn’t look at her.

“I know.”

*****

“Okay, but let’s just say, for example, that we gave Peter a load of Stimulant drugs, how do you think his spider DNA would react to it?” Ned said enthusiastically, while Michelle looked at both the boys with a disappointed expression.

They were sitting at one of the display dining tables, packets and pieces of their left-over breakfast strewn across it. They had now been inside the same grocery store for two nights, none of them wanting to address the big question they were all thinking. _What the hell are they going to do now?_ Mr stark didn’t know where they were, they had no way to call for help, and they couldn’t even step outside without being eaten alive by the Growlers that seemed to be multiplying by the hour. So, they had decided they would stay a few more nights before thinking about it.

“Nothing would happen. My metabolism would burn through it before it could do anything.” Peter said.

“Yes, but what if we gave you so many that your metabolism couldn’t keep up? Surely it would do something then?” 

Peter thought about this for a moment. “Then I guess I’d get super hyper for about an hour, then pass out.”

“See I thought that too. But then I thought, what if the drugs produced a counterreaction and increased your super strength and speed? Wouldn’t that be cool!”

“Only one way to test it out.” Peter said, which earned him a slap around the head. “What the hell, MJ?”

“We aren’t pumping you with drugs till you die for a little science experiment! God, I wonder how you too are still alive.” She scolded them. Peter smiled guiltily.

“I mean we weren’t actually going to do it.” He added quietly.

“Yeah, I don’t think we would be able to get our hands on any drugs in our situation.” Ned said, laughing at the glare Michelle sent his way.

A loud clanging from the metal doors Peter had barricaded shut had his head spinning and his body straightening. He thought he had imagined it but saw the others slowly standing up, their eyes fixed on where the noise had come from.

Another bang and some muffled voices had him shuffling around the table. “You guys go hide behind the aisles. I’ll go check out what’s happening. Don’t come out unless I say to.” He whispered urgently.

“But Pet –“ Ned began but Peter cut him off – they didn’t have time for this.

“ _Don’t_ come out until I say to, Ned.” He surprised himself at the sternness of his own voice and watched as the two nodded and scurried off out of sight.

He reached for the baseball bat they had found yesterday and swung it in a circular motion (that’s what he saw them all do in the movies, anyway). The thumping on the door increased and he hoped that whoever was out there would give up and move on. But, of course, they weren’t that lucky. The big metal door swung open and he flexed the muscles in his arm, preparing to take a swing.

This would be so much easier if he had his web shooters. 

A group of muscular people casually strolled in, as if there weren’t at least a dozen Growlers outside the building. Peter gulped, there were at least ten of them, and all of them were large and strongly built, each carrying wrenches or bats that were covered in rotten blood. 

They didn’t notice him straight away, but when they did, the dude at the front who Peter assumed was their leader, froze in his steps, gesturing for the large huddle behind him too as well.

The man looked older than the rest, probably in his mid-forties and was sporting a large scar that stretched from the bottom of his ear to his collarbone. He smiled, obviously amused at the sight in front of him.

Peter realised how foolish he probably looked. He was a seventeen-year-old kid, holding up a wooden baseball bat and preparing to take on ten grown adults. 

But then a face amongst the crowd caught his eye and if he wasn’t in a deadly situation, his mouth would have hung open.

_What the fuck was Flash doing here?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos much appreciated :))


	3. Chapter 3

What the fuck was _Flash_ doing here?

He kept his face indifferent, as if this new twist of events wasn’t eating him alive. He could tell Flash, his high school bully, was shocked too by the way his eyes suddenly widened. Considering that Flash’s hatred towards him was no secret, he decided it was best not to indicate he knew the boy.

“Well, well, well.” The man said, his voice deep and condescending. “Looks like someone else is squatting here.” A few behind him chuckled. “You’ve got five seconds to get out of here before my men over here beat the shit out of you. Five… Four… Three…”

“No.” Peter said defiantly, his voice a little shaky but still confident. “I was here first. You guys can get supplies and then leave.”

The man raised an eyebrow and studied him for a moment, before bursting into laughter, the people behind him following suite like an echo. “Are you here alone?”

“Yes.” Peter replied with no hesitation.

He studied him closer. “Are you lying to me?”

“No.” Again, no hesitation.

The sound of something crashing against the floor from Michelle and Ned’s direction had him groaning internally, his mind racing on how this could end with him not getting beaten to a pulp, and them still being able to stay at the store.

“If there are any more kids over there, come out of your little hiding spots before I destroy your friends face.”

Peter’s enhanced hearing could make out the shuffle of their footsteps as they started to come out of their spots, but Peter couldn’t let that happen. “Don’t.” He said firmly, and they seemed to get the message as he heard their feet still.

The man sighed. “So, I guess you want to do this the hard way then, Kid.” The leader gestured to the two men at his side and then to Peter, watching them with hungry eyes as they advanced towards him.

Peter figured that keeping his identity a secret was no longer his biggest issue; it wasn’t like there were any camera still in operation, and most people had more things to worry about that unmasking the young vigilante. Besides, Peter was not going to get out of this by pulling his punches. 

The hunk on his left aggressively swung a metal pipe at him, but it was lazy, and Peter easily ducked out of the way, immediately going into a backflip to avoid the other man’s kick. For a second the men paused, their leader raising a curious eyebrow as they realised maybe Peter wasn’t as scrawny and incapable as he looked.

One man lunged forward to take a punch at his face, but instead Peter caught the fist flying towards him and used both hands to grab the man’s arm and fling him over his back. The leader had realised something was up now. He had just watched a skinny boy lift a full-grown man like it was nothing. The two men recovered quickly, throwing and missing more blows – this was almost too easy. Peter landed a punch to one of their heads, happy when they dropped to the floor as dead weight, finally unconscious. He turned to the other who was already running towards him and started to advance towards him. He sent a strong shove to the man’s chest, making him fly across the store and slam into some shelves.

“Well, you are just full of surprises aren’t you!” The leader said with a huff. Peter was a little sad he couldn’t see the shocked expression on Flash’s face. “He is one of them mutant freaks.” Peter clenched his teeth at the degrading name. “All of you, finish him off.”

That was not what Peter was expecting. Before he even had time to think through his options, roughly seven of the gang started sprinting at him. Two people was one thing, but seven was something else entirely. 

Honestly? Peter was a little proud of himself, he was holding his own despite the swings raining down on him from all directions. Well, he was doing well till a muscular woman with a metal wench came at him and managed to get in a blow at his midsection, cracking a rib or two on impact. He had to bend over for a moment as his vision whited out but that lost him precious time as before he knew it, a baseball bat connected with the side of his face. What felt like a hundred of grabby hands secured him, his wrists being held behind his back and others forcing his shoulders back. He wriggled around in the right grip but couldn’t do much when one of the men, a malicious smile on his face delivered a powerful punch to his stomach. Peter couldn’t help the embarrassing noise that escaped him.

He had barely sucked in a breath when another fist connected with his middle and he groaned loudly. Through the haze of pain he barely noticed that the leader was no longer in front of him until he heard an unmistakable voice from across the store. Michelle had yelped from somewhere behind him but the gang restraining him stopped him from seeing. 

Deciding enough was enough, he threw his head back with full force, hearing the nose of someone behind him shatter. He followed it with a kick to the legs at his side and threw another person over his back. The grip around him loosened and he spun round, his body dropping back into its defensive stance.

“Ah, ah, ah.” The leader said in that sickening tone. That’s when Peter heard the clicking of a gun as the safety switched off and saw it positioned under Michelle’s neck.

Peter immediately threw his hands up in surrender, eyes wide. “Let her go.” 

“Cooperate, and I won’t shoot your girlfriend.” He said menacingly. A little to their left, Ned was also restrained by someone, a hand clamped over his mouth so he couldn’t make a sound.

“We will leave. We won’t get in your way anymore.” Peter tried to reason. He couldn’t tell what was more dangerous: staying in here with this bunch of lunatics or trying to survive outside among the Growlers. 

“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that.” The leader said. A man came up from behind him and clasped his wrists together tightly, pushing him down to the floor on his knees. Peter didn’t even consider resisting. They led Michelle and Ned to beside him, also pushing them down to their knees and keeping the gun trained on Michelle’s forehead.

“Why not?” Peter said calmly, trying not to aggravate the man.

“You are enhanced. Are you not?”

“Yes.” There was no point in lying now.

“How?”

Peter remained silent. The leader, who was suddenly holding a wooden bat, swung it into his side forcefully. Peter barely supressed a scream through clenched teeth, and would have hunched over but the man restraining tugged his head up by his hair. Michelle whimpered beside him but thankfully said nothing, as Ned's eyes widened in concern, still unable to make a sound.

"How?" The man repeatedly, but this time he had a wildness in his eyes that scared Peter - before he seemed calm and collected, but that had been replaced with fury, and that made him unpredictable.

“Why does that matter?” He pushed out, his voice hoarse.

“It matters because it is a dangerous world out there. Having your abilities would be very useful. Stealing limited resources, fighting off Growlers – you get the idea.”

“I was born with them.” Peter lied.

“I think you are lying to me.” Suddenly, his hand shot out and he grabbed Michelle’s hair tightly, tugging painfully. Michelle let out a surprised yelp and tried to angle her body to lessen the strain on her head. “Tell me the truth!” The leader shouted, drops of spit flying out his mouth.

“I am! I promise! Let her go!” Peter pleaded desperately, his attention flicking between the leader and Michelle.

“Alright.” He bought the gun away from her head and Peter sagged in relief. “I’ll shoot him first.” He changed the direction to the gun in a flash, the cold metal resting against Ned’s forehead.

He could see tears brimming in the corner of his friend’s eyes and he hated that this was all his fault. Ned couldn’t say anything because of the rough hand that was still clamped around his mouth, but his eyes held a look of pure terror.

“No! Wait!”

“I don’t think your friend here will survive a bullet to the brain. Ill give you three seconds. Three…”

“Please don’t! Hurt me instead!” Peter’s pleading was no use.

“Two…”

“Stop! Wait! I was telling the truth!

“One…”

“No, no! Alright I’ll – “

_Bang_.

Peter’s head rang from the sound, his sensitive ears throbbing painfully. He pulled in gasps of air, not wanting to look at the blood he knew would be coving the floor by Ned’s limp body. He had heard the thud of a body dropping like a puppet with no strings and couldn’t bear to look at his lifeless eyes.

Still he knew he had to, and he slowly dragged his eyes across the floor seeing speckles of crimson surrounding the pool of red. But then he looked again, and he realised it wasn’t Ned’s body lying on the marble floor, but the corpse of the leader. Laying flat on his stomach with a bullet hole in the back of his head.

Ned was hyperventilating, but he was _alive_. 

Peter scanned the group of shocked thugs, spotting Flash directly across from him. His hands were shaking, and his chest was heaving as he held the gun out, obviously in shock.

Peter realised this was his chance and he needed to take it. He lunged for the leader in one swift movement, pulling the pistol out of his dead hand and aimed it at the gang. He had never even fired a gun and had no intention in adding it to his list of new experiences, but these people didn’t need to know that. Some of them raised their hands in surrender or backed away slowly, and Peter felt a little more confident in seeing that no one else seemed to have a weapon.

“Get out.” Peters voice was low and quiet, more threatening than he had ever sounded before. The men he had previously knocked out were scrambling up and limping away, as the still standing ones inched out the metal door warily, as if Peter was a frightened animal that could pounce at any moment.

His body remained tense until the last thug was out and the blue doors clanged shut. A wave of exhaustion washed through his body and he nearly collapsed on the spot, his cracked ribs and bruised face begging for his attention. Flash was still in front of him, his gun still pointed at where the leader lay motionless on the floor, seemingly disconnected from the world.

“Hey, Flash?” Peter said in a soft voice. “Can you put the gun down for me?” He knew Flash wouldn’t shoot him, but he seemed to have disassociated and that made him unpredictable.

Gradually, Flash’s gaze lifted up to Peter and he blinked a few time before letting the gun clatter to the floor. “Oh. Hey, Penis.”

Peter let out a breathy laugh, relived he was coming back to himself.

Flash straightened his back and cleared his throat as he tried to snap back into his mean persona. “A thank you would be nice.”

“Thank you, Flash.” And he meant it. Flash nodded, still a little dazed and walked over to Peter putting a hand on his shoulder. 

“It’s – err- good to see you, Parker.” He said it quietly while staring at the ground, but Peter just smiled and shrugged as he knew that was hard for him. But of course, Flash was still the same high school bully, so he pushed against his shoulders as he past him, more playfully than aggressively though.

The sudden movement jolted his broken ribs and he cried out in pain, biting his lip to stop the string of curses that was begging to be let out.

“Sorry – holy shit!” Flash exclaimed, remembering that Peter was a mutant. “How did you – since when – what the –“

Peter pursed his lips, not sure how he was going to explain this one.

“Peter is Spiderman.” Michelle said from where she was sitting next to Ned.

“ _MJ!_ ” Peter hissed, to which Michelle shrugged in response.

“Yeah right.” Flash said laughing as Peter gave him a bored and slightly offended look. He looked at the others lack of smiles and suddenly stopped laughing. “Wait, you’re being serious?” his voice went unnaturally high. 

“Yep – you have been bullying Spiderman for the last two years.” Ned added, grinning ear to ear as if he hadn’t just had a pistol pushed up against his forehead.

“Thanks, Ned.” Peter replied, slightly embarrassed.

If they were a cartoon, Peter was sure Flash’s eyes would have bulged out of his head by the way he was staring intently at him. “You’re Spiderman…” He whispered.

Petr gave a little nod and a cheesy thumbs up, and Michelle couldn’t help but snort at his dorkiness.

“So, uh, what were you doing with them?” Peter asked the question they had all been thinking.

This time Flash looked embarrassed. “Well, that dude”, he gestured to the dead body. “is Jared; one of my fathers business partners. He owns a wrestling club, hence all his friendly buddies. My parents had already gone to a safety zone near them so, uh, couldn’t pick me up.” Peter ignored the twinge of sympathy he felt for him. “I’d known Jared most of my life, unfortunately. The asshole had it coming. My father payed him to take me to a zone. I didn’t realise we would be taking a detour.”

“Sorry you had to blow his brains out.” Michelle said – she wasn’t one to handle careful conversations delicately.

Flash shrugged. “Oh, it’s fine actually. He’s a terrible person and I know for a fact he has done worse to other people.” They stood in an awkward silence for a minute. “Are you guys going to make me leave?”

Peter was taken back by the question. “Are you serious? You saved are butts! Of course, we aren’t going to make you leave.” Peter said.

“Oh. Thanks, I guess.” Peter thought he might have saw a genuine smile, but it was gone after he blinked.

Peter held his arm around his mid section again, scrunching he eyes shut to rise out a particularly bad wave of pain.

“Peter are you okay? They got you good.” Ned said taking a step towards him.

Peter tried to reply but found the pain only worsened, him letting out a muffled squeak instead. He looked up to the ceiling to try stop the tears threatening to trickle out - that would be far too embarrassing.

“You don’t look okay. I saw them hit you with that pole at least six times.” Flash said, a hint of concern in his voice.

“Yeah, you look like shit.” Michelle stated. Peter shifted his head to glare at her but realised she was probably right. “Take off your shirt.”

“What?” Peter spluttered.

Michelle rolled her eyes. “Stop being so bashful and take off the damn shirt.” She ordered. “We need to see the damage.”

“Fine.” Peter grumbled. He tugged the bottom over his head but froze when the pain across his side wouldn’t let him reach any higher to pull it off. “Can I have a little help?” Michelle reached over and gently tugged it over his head, her fingers crazing over his bare skin and sent ripples of shivers down his spine.

The three stared at Peter in a mixture of shock and sympathy. “Oh, come on it’s not that…” Peter begun to say but trailed off when he looked down at himself. “…bad.” Okay, so maybe it looked a little bad, but he had dealt with worse from Patrol. Blues, purples, greens, reds and blacks had blended together like a child’s painting across his mid-section, the angriest places where the woman had gotten a swing in with the pole. 

Peter didn’t like all the eyes on him. “Seriously guys, I’m fine.” Michelle scoffed sarcastically. “I’ve had way worse from just going on patrol. It will be healed by tomorrow.”

“Dude, that’s not helping your case.” Ned said.

At the revelation that Peter was Spiderman, things that hadn’t quite made sense before were beginning to get pieced together in Flash’s mind. You would have had to be an idiot to not notice the bruises Peter was always sporting, or his stifled yelps of pain when he moved a little too quickly, or the way he would randomly leave in the middle of class. At the time, Flash had just assumed he was part of some gang or put the numerous injuries down to his clumsiness. 

But understanding the real reason behind all of that was raising even more questions in his head. _How long had he been Spiderman for? Had he met the Avengers? Why had he put up with Flash’s bullying for so long?_

“There is a small pharmacy at the back of the store. Let’s head over there and patch you up.” Michelle said, leaving no room for argument. Peter nodded miserably and followed her away.

Ned and Flash stood awkwardly for a moment, looking anywhere but each other and the bloody body on the floor.

“So…“ Flash said just to fill the silence. “What you Nerds been getting up to round here?”

“Look, Peter is too nice to say it but if you want to stick with us then you got to promise not too be a dick.” Ned said, protectively.

Flash was taken back by the fire in his eyes. “I just saved you guys!” Flash defended himself.

“Yes, but you still watched Peter get beaten up, and then you only did something when I was half a second from getting shot in the head!” _Okay_ , so he did have a point.

“Alright. Fine.”

*****

“MJ, you really don’t need to – “

“Do you ever stop talking?” Michelle said, barely lifting an eye to look at him as she sponged a wet cloth over the parts of Peter’s skin that had broken. She had managed to wipe off most the blood from his face, but his mid-section was proving to be more difficult as Peter couldn’t help but flinch every time she passed over a sore spot (which was basically everywhere). 

Peter sat in silence for the next few minutes, trying his best not to lose even more of his dignity by crying out in pain. “You’re mad at me.” He said finally.

Still, Michelle didn’t look up. “I’m not mad at you.”

Peter let out a breath. “Yes, yes you are. You are doing that MJ-thing where you keep clenching your fists and refusing to look at me and you always do that when you are mad at someone.”

“Okay, fine. So, what if I’m mad? I’m always mad at everyone.” She clenched her fists subconsciously – _shit, how did he know her so well?_

“Not at me you’re not.”

“Just leave it alone, Peter.”

“See! You never call me Peter! It’s always dipshit, or nerd, or loser.” He hissed when she prodded him a little harder.

“Are you saying you don’t like it when I call you those things? Because I can just call you Peter if it upsets you so fucking much.” Michelle said, a little too angrily. She threw the damp cloth into the bucket making it tip over and the water spill out onto the marble floor. Sighing, she rubbed hand over her face, the feeling of pure exhaustion weighing her bones down.

“I didn’t say that.” Peter said quietly. “I’m just worried about you.”

“Why do you always have to go play the hero?” Michelle said into her hands.

“What?”

“You made Ned and I just hide behind the shelves and it was _killing_ me. I couldn’t see you, but I could hear them hurting you, hear their metal poles against your body, but I couldn’t do anything! And then the leader dragged me out, and I saw the blood surrounding you.” She swiped away a stray tear, already regretting letting her guard down.

“I’m sorry.” Peter said, and he genuinely was. “ _But_ , I could get used to the hero nickname.” He gave her his best smoulder impression, and she let out a wet laugh.

“We should probably get back to the others.” Peter nodded and pulled his shirt back over his head, carefully sitting up.

“MJ?”

“Yeah?”

“Are we good?”

“Of course, we are.” She started walking away. “ _Loser._ ”

“There we go!” Peter laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so I'm having a slight problem.
> 
> When I post a new chapter it doesn't seem to be appearing under any of the fandom tags and I have no idea why. I've checked that the publication date is correct and I don't save any drafts so I don't understand what could be causing it. Anyone have any ideas?
> 
> It's frustrating as it means no one is seeing my work. Anyway, thanks for reading :))


	4. Chapter 4

A few days had passed since Flash had arrived, and the four were beginning to grow restless. They knew they couldn’t stay in their cosy corner of the world forever, but when they had no plan or any idea what was out there, it was getting harder and harder to leave.

So here they were, sat on the floor of an abandoned store with the largest map they could find laid out in front of them. None on them knew how to map read, but with no signal it was the best they could get.

“What if we took this road here.” Ned placed his pen on a point on the map. “And followed it up to the highway.” 

Michelle studied the map for a moment. “But then where do we go from there? We can’t just drive along the highway forever, hoping to come across another living person.” That was the other thing that made them reluctant to leave the store; when they first announced the apocalypse, already 8.9% of Queens’ population had been taken by the virus. There was no telling how many people were left now, or what the world looked like after their week inside. 

The virus had spread quicker than anyone could have anticipated, and Peter was starting to think there could be more Growlers than there were people left. He couldn’t even venture to think about whether May and Tony were okay – last time he went down that rabbit hole he was crawled up on the floor in one of his worst panic attacks yet.

“I think the safety zones must be underground.” Flash declared. “That’s the only logical place to put them.”

“Well we can’t exactly search the whole underground of Queens.” Michelle flattened out the map.

“I mean we only have to find one safety zone, right? I know there isn’t any signal but there must be someway the camps are keeping in contact – “

Something in Peter’s brain clicked into place. _Lightbulb._

“Flash you’re a genius!” Peter yelled, making the others jump.

“I know.” Flash said like it was obvious. “But, uh, why?”

“A while ago me and Mr Stark were in the lab and we thought it would be cool if we could create a communicator that could work anywhere, like, space or something.” Peter stumbled over his words as he pushed them out in excitement.

“Why would you need to be able to communicate in space?” Michelle looked at him.

“Well, last time I went to space it wasn’t nearly as fun as I thought it would be.” _Understatement of the year._ “And since then I have had this irrational fear that somehow I am going to end up in space again and I’m going to get lost and I’m going to get all dusty again and – “

“Woah, woah, woah. Breathe, dude.” Ned put a hand on his shoulder.

“Hold up! Penis has been to space?” Flash said, his eyes going wide and mouth dropping open.

“Yes.” Peter composed himself. “Anyway, that’s not important right now. Me and Mr Stark did it! Well we never got to test it out fully since we haven’t gone to space since, but in theory it should work!”

“Do you happen to have this communicator-device-thing on you?” Michelle questioned.

“No, but I have it at my apartment.”

“How the hell are we going to get to your apartment. It’s like a thirty-minute drive from here.”

“Looks like we need to find ourselves a ride.”

“I think I can help with that.” Flash said, a smug grin on his face. 

***

Peter and Flash sprinted across the parking lot towards the red Ferrari, making sure to be quiet so an army of Growlers didn’t notice them. 

Flash told them about the super cool car he had seen on his way in and assumed someone had left it here in the panic of the evacuation. They decided Peter and Flash would go to Peter’s apartment to grab the communicator, while, much to their dismay, MJ and Ned would wait at the store. Peter had wanted to go on his own to avoid putting them in danger, but he didn’t know where the car was and Flash did. So, here they were.

Peter forced the door handle open and slid into the car next to Flash, opening the glove compartments to find a key.

“It doesn’t need a key, moron.” Flash flipped the ignition and the engine roared to life.

“Shit – wait! I don’t have my drivers license yet!” Peter panicked.

“Because we definitely need to worry about getting pulled over in the middle of the apocalypse!” Flash said sarcastically. The Growlers had obviously heard the thrum of the engine, as they were tearing their across the open space towards them. “Fucking drive!”

“Right, sorry, okay. I got this.” If he was honest, Peter was freaking out a little – he had only driven a couple of times in one of Mr Stark’s sports cars, and they hadn’t gone too smoothly.

He pushed his foot down on the accelerator a little too hard and the engine immediately stalled. He cursed as the Growlers got closer, one of them smashing their arm through the back window.

“Hurry up!” Flash yelled. Finally, Peter got the car to move forward and pushed the car to go faster, swerving as he rounded a corner. The car scraped against the side of the building, knocking off the Growler that had been clinging on to the back. Flash smacked him round the back of his head. “You have been behind the wheel for less that thirty seconds and the car is already wrecked. Good job, Penis.”

“Hey! I got us out of there, didn’t I?” Peter defended himself. They hit a speed bump and Peter yelped as the car lurched forward.

Now that they were out of imminent danger and Peter had finally relaxed a little, he could finally take in the state of the roads. Crumpled cars lay scattered among debris, making it hard to drive in a straight line. He could imagine the chaos of the whole city trying to evacuate while Growlers smashed into random cars and pulled out any survivors. He deliberately didn’t look into any car windows, scared too face the charred corpses he was sure he would find. Every shop and every house was abandoned, their windows shattered.

Flash gulped. “It had looked bad before, but… not this bad.”

“I’m sure it doesn’t look this bad upstate. It’s just because this is a super dense area, right?”

“Stop being so naïve, Parker. Everyone’s probably dead now, anyway.”

“Don’t say that.” Peter said, firmly. He couldn’t think like that.

“Fine. Keeping lying to yourself. It’s just going to make it that much harder when you find out your precious auntie and your precious Mr Stark have turned into one of those things.” Flash didn’t know why he was saying this – he didn’t want to. But, as usual, when he opened his mouth, he couldn’t stop the flow of words as they left his lips.

“Shut up, Flash.” Peter grit his teeth and tried to blink the tears away. He hadn’t realised he was gripping the steering wheel so tight until it bent under his fingers, and he immediately loosened his grip.

Flash felt guilty. Why did he always feel so guilty when he was around Peter Parker? “Okay, I’m sorry. I’m sure they are fine.” 

They didn’t say anything for the remainder of the journey, just stared ahead and took in the mess that surrounded them. Peter’s street came into view and he let out a sigh of relief at seeing it hadn’t been destroyed and drove the car to a stop as close to the entrance as he could. 

“Your gun loaded?” Now there is a sentence Peter never thought he would say. Between the four of them, they had two pistols, so had bought one with them and left the other for Ned and MJ to use as protection. Peter gripped the trusty bat he had in his hand, giving it a practice swing.

“Yep. Oh, and you should never play baseball. You look stupid with that thing.” 

Peter gave him a dejected and slightly confused look. “I could so play baseball if I wanted.” Peter looked down at the bat in his hand.

“I mean you _could_. But you would just look dumb.”

“ _I would so not look dumb._ ” Peter whispered, more to himself that Flash. He pushed open the door of his apartment complex and listened extra carefully to his Spider sense as he edged towards the stairs. A strangled groan sounded beside him as his neck buzzed and he let his arms automatically swing the bat to the side, watching them clash against a Growlers head. Blood sprayed across the wall and it melted to the ground.

Not even seconds later another one was sprinting towards them and Peter reached out to grab Flash but before he could a gunshot rang out and it dropped to the floor. Flash held out the gun, breathing hard and let out a ‘whoop!’

“Nice one!” Peter said, smiling wide.

“I bet we just looked so badass!” Flash exclaimed, and the boys high-fived, so excited they forgot they were supposed to hate each other.

Cautiously, they ventured up the long flight of stairs, Peter taking the leader.

“Do you like MJ?” Flash suddenly said out of the blue.

Peter was taken back. “What? Uh... I don’t know.”

“It’s kind of obvious. You stare at her all the time.”

“I do?” peter was horrified – he hoped Michelle hadn’t noticed. He shook his head. “Stop talking. I need to stay alert in case another Growler comes.”

“You’re changing the subject. I mean I wouldn’t blame you. MJ is hot as fuck.” 

Peter didn’t say anything. He knew that Michelle was extremely pretty, but that wasn’t why he liked her so much. She was just… amazing.

Once they got to his floor without any other nasty encounters, he jiggled the handle to his apartment and nudged the door open.

It still smelled the same. Sweet honey from the last candles May had lit wafted up his nose and he inhaled the familiar scent. 

_It felt like her_. He half expected May to greet him with a crushing hug and a wide smile, a cloth in her hand as she tried to push away the smoke from a burnt dinner. He half expected to hear her contagious laughter through the thin walls as she watched one of her favourite sitcoms and took small sips from a glass of wine.

But of course, none of that happened. A feeling of emptiness washed over him as he stared into their tiny flat. It was just how he left it when he ran out the door last week, late for school as usual. There were dirty dished and dying plants littering the table tops, and a fluffy blanket was strewn across the sofa from when they had watched a movie the night before. Their home seemed to be the only thing in the world that had laid untouched by the deadly virus, and if he imagined really hard, he could pretend nothing had ever gone wrong, and he was just waiting for May to burst through the door with a Tai takeaway in her hands.

He shuffled further into the room slowly, placing his bat and backpack down on the side.

Flash looked around the small space, not sure what to do with himself. Before the virus Flash would have made a comment or tried to make Peter feel bad about living in such a cramped home, but seeing the way Peter looked at the memories of his whole life, a broken expression on his face, stopped him. He couldn’t help but feel a little jealous. Yes, the apartment was messy and squashed, but it was also warm and homely and safe. Flash never had that growing up.

Peter walked towards his bedroom ad immediately searched under his bed for the big box of science projects he had. He made a noise of celebration when he found the communicator and held it up to Flash.

“That’s your plan to save us.” Flash said, disappointed.

“Well, it’s not supposed to look pretty!” Admittedly, it didn’t look the best. It was a pile of metal parts and loose wires with a small speaker in the middle.

Peter flung open the doors of his wardrobe and reached for his web shooters, stashing all the spare cartridges he had into his pockets. He fastened them around his wrists and sighed, already feeling safer knowing they ere on. 

“Oh my god, can I try your suite on?” Flash yelled excitedly, pulling it out of his wardrobe.

Peter snatched it back. “No!” He quickly realised it wasn’t going to fit into his backpack and he wasn’t likely to need it anytime soon anyway. But, at the same time, he wasn’t sure if he was ready to completely let his alter ego go. As a compromise, he threw his suit back into his wardrobe but held tightly onto his mask and headed back towards the front door.

They were about to leave, when Peter caught site of something across the room. “One second.” He jogged over to a shelf next to their TV and took hold of one of the photo frames. It was probably his favourite one: it was a picture of Aunt May, Uncle Ben, his mom, his dad and him, only about four years old, nestled in the arms of his mom, a massive grin on his face. It was snowing, so they all had massive coats and fluffy hats on and were bundling together for warmth. Uncle Ben had a hand on Peters belly, tickling him while his dad looked down at them, a proud smile on his face. Aunt May seemed to be in hysterics as she looked at the camera, finding their family’s attempt at taking a photo hilarious.

Everyone just looked so… _happy_. And now, three people in this picture were dead, and Peter was starting to realise that that number might now be four. He shook his head and took a deep breath, sliding the picture out of its frame. He delicately folded it up and tucked it into the inside of his jacket, hoping that Flash didn’t notice.

Of course, Flash did notice, it was hard not to when Peter had been staring at it, vacantly, for a few minutes. For once he didn’t push him, or yell at him to hurry up. He could sense now wasn’t the time to be a dick – he wasn’t completely heartless. 

Peter moved past Flash and out the door, not daring to lift his gaze from the floor. He gave his apartment one last look, knowing deep down that this was the last time he would ever smell that unique scent of honey mixed with coffee, or see the place that held so many amazing memories. He shut the door a little to harshly, the wood splintering down the middle.

He was just so _angry_. So mad at the fact everything he knew and loved was slowly being ripped away from him – and, god, did it hurt. It hurt so fucking much.

They were quiet as they made there way down the staircase and clambered back into the red Ferrari. 

After Peter’s questionable driving skills on their way here, Flash took the initiative to take the wheel this time. Peter didn’t mind; he was tired anyway. He hadn’t realise how emotionally draining saying goodbye to his home would be.

Peter stared out the window, his eyes drifting shut every now and then. 

A loud bang followed by a high pitched scream had his body shooting up, fully alert. Flash’s head whipped around as he tried to see where it was coming from. A couple more shots followed and Peter was panicking.

Down the street he could just make out a swarm of Growlers clambering up the side of a building. At the top was a guy, probably a little older than him holding out a gun and shooting down the monsters that got to close to the top. He was clutching a small girl close to him, keeping her out of harms way. The man tried to fire again, but the gun simply clicked – it was empty. He threw the gun to the ground and stumbled away, but the roof they were on was only small and the Growlers were still trying to climb over the edge towards them.

“Flash! Pull over!” Peter yelled, already unfastening his seatbelt.

“What? Are you crazy?” Flash’s voice cracked. He didn’t even make a move to slow the car down.

“Yes! Pull over we can help them!”

“No, we will get ourselves killed!”

Peter groaned and took hold of his baseball bat. He opened the door and leaped out the moving vehicle, rolling along the hard concrete on impact. He thought he heard Flash desperately calling his name but he ignored it and sprinted towards the gaggle of Zombies.

“Hey! Over here!” He shouted at them, waving his hands. He didn’t know how smart Growlers were, but he was hoping not smart enough so he could distract them.

It worked, about fifty blazing eyes turned towards him, forgetting about the people on the roof. But then they started running at him, and Peter realised he hadn’t thought this far into his plan.

_“Here goes nothing.”_


	5. Chapter 5

Shooting a web out to the side, he swung low, his ankle narrowly missing the hand of a Growler. Despite the circumstances, Peter smiled at the feeling of soaring through the air. It had only been a week since he last went on patrol, but he hadn’t realised how much he missed it.

Peter clung to the side of a building with his sticky fingers until two zombies were directly beneath him, trying to claw their way up. He pushed of the wall and dropped, using the momentum to land on the Growlers and knock them down. It worked and he wasted no time in flipping over and kicking the rotten skull of another one.

It felt oddly freeing, being able to use his full strength. He tried not to think about how these monsters had been regular, innocent people not even a month ago.

Peter was successfully knocking them down one by one with a combination of his web shooters and hand to hand combat, but the commotion of the fight was just leading more and more Growlers in.

There were too many for him to fight of on his own and some had returned to climbing towards the people on the roof. He fired two webs to the building they were on and catapulted himself up to the pair. 

Peter barely had time to squeak out a hurried greeting when the older boy thrust the girl into his arms.

“Take my sister first!” He demanded. Peter didn’t respond and instead rapped his hand around the girl, who he guess was about eight or nine, and swung towards the red Ferrari. He shoved her into the backseat and took off back to the roof.

By the time he got there, the man was wresting with a Growler, his feet getting closer to the edge. Peter used the power of his swing and rammed into the Growlers side, launching it off the roof completely. 

“Ready?” Peter said breathlessly, hugging the man round the waste.

“Err – “ 

“That’s good enough!” Peter leaped off the side of the building, clutching the man close, just before the roof they had been standing on became swarmed with Growlers.

Peter swung a little to close the ground, and one of the zombies managed to take hold of his ankle, being lifted into the air with him. Usually the weight of two adults wouldn’t be too hard to handle, but when one of those adults was a flesh-eating monster it was hard not to panic. He kicked his leg and struggled to get it off but stopped paying attention to his swinging path. He shot a web that missed a building by a few inches, sending them both hurtling towards the ground. He twisted in the air and tried to angle his body, so he absorbed most of the impact. They hit the ground and rolled, Peter gasping as his wrist snapped in two, a burning pain shooting through his whole arm. 

The two stumbled up and pushed themselves forward towards the car waiting for them. They ran as fast as they could, but the Growlers were still gaining on them and Peter wasn’t going to risk swinging with a possibly broken wrist.

Flash and the little girl had already swung the car doors open, anxiously waiting for them.

“Drive!” Peter yelled as he threw his body into the front seat, the other dude sliding into the backseat besides his sister just as fast. Flash slammed his foot onto the gas and the four of them were pushed into their seats at the sudden speed.

But they weren’t quick enough as several Growlers had managed to cling onto the car despite the sudden change in velocity, thumping their rotting hands against the windows. 

“Does anyone have a gun?” The older boy shouted over the shrieking of zombies. Flash tossed him their pistol from front of his seat, the older boy wasting no time in switching the safety off.

The window next to the little girl shattered as a Growler tried to force its way through, and she screamed, terrified. With perfect aim the older boy aimed the gun and fired, shooting the bullet straight into its head. He then swung his arm round and fired at the back window, the glass breaking on impact and sending the Growler that was clung to it sprawling across the road.

Everything was happening so quickly, and suddenly Peter felt the familiar tingle up his neck as the window next to him shattered, pushing himself away from the bloody fingers trying to claw at him.

“Get down!” The older boy yelled, and Peter did without hesitation. He shot once, Peter feeling a small sharp pain in the corner of his ear from where the bullet had nipped him. It did its job though, as the last Growler was pierced in the shoulder, letting out an animalistic yelp before falling to the ground.

They all heavily breathed for a moment as the car continued to speed down the empty roads. 

“Holy shit.” Flash whispered to no one in particular. Peter winced as the adrenaline from before was slowly fading out and his wrist throbbed painfully. He could feel the warm trickle of blood that glided down his face from the small nip in his ear but wasn’t worried as he knew it would be healed by the time they got back.

“So, you’re Spiderman.” The older boy in the back said in between breaths, as if that revelation was the most pressing issue. His voice was deep and gruff, the kind that thirteen-year-old girls would squeal over.

Peter took a moment to collect himself before slowly nodding. “You can call me Peter.” He looked in the front mirror, finally getting a good look at the two. The older boy had clear dark skin, a muscular build, and even though they were all sitting, Peter could tell he was at least half a foot taller than him. His black natural hair had a clean-cut fade going down the side of his head, and he had the stubble of an unshaven beard forming. 

He was also wearing one of those sleeveless leather jackets which Peter thought looked so badass, but knew he could never pull off. Peter could just about see the beginnings of a tattoo along his upper arm, but he couldn’t tell of what because of the black T-shirt that covered it. As someone comfortable with their sexuality, Peter could admit that he was very attractive, and he felt a pang of jealousy.

Peter had thought he was older at first, but now he could look at him closer, he was guessing around eighteen to twenty-two.

He was rubbing the back of the girl next to him – he was pretty sure he called her his sister. She had the same dark skin, and her hair was styled in beautiful long extensions that fell past her shoulders, each braid secured with a small pink bobble. She wore a bright pink shirt, and a black jacket over the top of that, with a small, light blue Frozen watch strapped to her left wrist. Surprisingly, she wasn’t crying like most small children would be – _must be the shock_ , Peter thought to himself.

“Aiden.” The older boy said, seeming calmer now. He squeezed the girl’s shoulder. “and this is my sister, Imani.”

Peter nodded, still a little to overwhelmed to respond. Flash must have felt similar because he had barely acknowledged the people in the back as he stared forwards, gripping the wheel tightly.

Aiden cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable with the awkward silence. “Thanks for saving us back there. You didn’t have to.” He nudged his elbow into the young girl’s side.

“Oh yeah, thanks.” Imani said, her voice quiet and timid.

“It was nothing.” Peter said, dismissively, holding his wrist to his chest as the pain worsened. “So, where are you guys headed?” He felt he had to say something.

“We were on our way to one of the safety zones, when are car broke down. We pretty quickly encountered some Growlers, and that’s when you showed up.” Aiden straightened his leather jacket.

“Do you know where one of the safety zones is?” Peter perked up, feeling a glimmer of hope.

“I was kind of hoping you’d be able to tell me… We heard somewhere that there is one in Queens, but we never found anything. I’m starting to think there are none left.”

“What do you mean?” Flash said, starting to come down from his shock.

“I mean I think they have all been taken over.” Aiden paused. “By Growlers.”

Peter gulped. He knew that was a possibility but hearing someone else voice it filled his bones with icy dread. “I might have a way we can communicate with a safety zone.” Peter said, remembering the communicator they had just retrieved. “But until we figure it out, I guess you can stay with –“

“Peter!” Flash suddenly squeaked. “Can I have a quick word with you?” His words were polite, but Peter could tell by the tightness in his voice that he was angry. He glanced at the siblings in the backseats. “ _Alone._ ”

“Dude, we are in a moving car. Where are they supposed to go?” Peter said, a little exasperated.

Flash said nothing but pulled the car over to the side of the road, turning off the ignition and stepping out of the car. With a sharp wrist movement, he gestured Peter to get out and join him.

Peter sighed and unstrapped his seatbelt. He gave Aiden and Imani an apologetic glance before stepping out to join Flash, closing the door behind him. 

“You can’t be serious, Parker!” Flash whisper-yelled, closing the space between them. If they were alone, Peter was pretty sure he would have been shoved by now.

“What?” Peter said, starting to get annoyed with Flash’s mood swings.

“We have known these two, for what, five minutes? And you are already inviting them to come squat with us, what the hell?

“They haven’t got anywhere else to go!”

“We have done enough for them! Let’s just drop them off here and they can look after themselves.!”

Peter curled his fists. “Seriously? It’s the end of the world and you still can’t find it in you to do one decent thing?

“Stop acting like you’re such a saint, Parker!”

“I never said – “

“You think you’re better than everyone else just because you have those stupid powers when you don’t even deserve them! Well news flash, Parker, you aren’t invincible – and you definitely aren’t _special_. You’re just a fucking freak.” Flash was breathing heavily. 

Peter stared at the ground, trying to not let the hurtful comments get to him. The same comments that he thought about himself too often. “I know you’re angry. And I know you don’t like me. But these people… they are like us, Flash. They’re survivors. And I’m starting to think that there aren’t many of us left, so… Us survivors? We need to stick together.”

Flash paused for a moment, his bubbling anger slowly deflating as he realised, as usual, Peter was right. “Fine.” He said, his voice low. Flash avoided eye contact with Peter and reluctantly got back into the drivers eat.

Peter forced a smile as he looked at the pair in the back. “We have decided to let you come back and stay with us while we try to get help. If you want to, that is.”

Relief seemed to wash over Aiden’s face at the thought of shelter for Imani. “Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

Flash said nothing but his body tensed as he pulled out and started to drive again.

“Yes, it’s completely fine. Besides, we will be safer in greater numbers.” Peter replied.

“Thank you, really.”

They sat in silence for the next few minutes, the only sound being the hum of the engine. Peter tried to ignore the throbbing in his wrist as he gripped it loosely, hoping that he wouldn’t have to reset it when they got back. He decided he wouldn’t tell them about his little injury, though, since no one had noticed it yet and there was no point in complaining about things that they couldn’t fix.

“So, how are you planning on contacted a safety zone?” Aiden said.

“Well I’m actually going to try and contact Mr Stark. We – “

“Mr Stark as in _Ironman_?” Imani exclaimed, her previous shyness being replaced with bewilderment.

Peter nodded, finding her excitement for such a small thing endearing.

“Hold up! You are telling me that you know _the_ Tony stark?” Her leg was bouncing and her eyes were wide as saucers as she edged closer in her seat.

“Yeah.” Peter chuckled. “We are pretty close and a while back we invented a device in the lab that allows us to communicate anywhere. Even if there is no signal.”

“That is so cool!”

Aiden snorted. “She is kind of obsessed with Ironman.”

“Shut-up Aiden!” She said, hitting her brother in the arm. “I am not.” She said a little quieter. 

Imani reminded Peter of Morgan, Mr Stark’s five-year-old daughter, and Peter instantly felt himself feeling protective over the little girl who he barely knew.

Aiden turned his attention back to Peter. “I’m guessing you’re like super-smart, then.”

Flash snorted, the first indication he made that he was listening. But it wasn’t friendly like before, it held a venom that Peter hadn’t heard in his voice since the start of the apocalypse. 

Peter shrugged. “I mean I came up with some of the theories and helped him with the wiring, but he did most of the construction.”

They finally arrived back at the grocery store and Peter was glad it was still light out. Hopefully they hadn’t worried Ned and Michelle too much.

“This where you’ve been squatting?” Aiden climbed out the car, holding his gun at eye level just in case.

“Home sweet home.” Peter grinned, relieved to finally be back. “Heads up. We are with a couple of other people. They might freak out at first, but they are cool. I promise.”

Peter pushed open the blue metal doors and rounded the first corner as a body collided with his. It took him a moment to register it was Michelle, giving him the tightest hug he had ever received. She obviously hadn’t noticed the new arrivals. 

“Why did you take so long?” She whispered into the crook of his neck.

“We ran into a little trouble on the way back…” Peter replied, pulling away from the hug and gesturing to Aiden and Imani, who were sheepishly standing in the corner.

Ned jogged over to them with a big smile on his face but froze mid step when he saw the pair of newbies. “Care to explain, Peter?” He whisper-yelled, his voice high pitch.

“They didn’t have anywhere else to go… and I figured they could stay with us till we find the safety zone. This is Aiden and Imani.”

Michelle nodded slowly as she tried to take in this new information without shouting or slapping Peter round the face. “You never heard of stranger-danger, Peter?” she said with a tight smile.

Peter sighed as Michelle called him Peter again. Why was everyone so mad at him today?

“Besides he kind of saved us today.” Peter turned to Aiden. “I’d probably be dead if you hadn’t shot that Growler.” He just shrugged in response. Everyone remained silent, each taking turns to look between each other. “Oh, come on, guys. More the merrier, right?”

Again, more silence. “Maybe we should go.” Aiden said quietly. He gripped Imani’s arm.

“No, sorry.” Michelle finally said. “It’s just a lot to take in. You can stay with us.”

Aiden blew out a long breath.

“You guys come with me. There is still loads of food left on the shelves and we can probably find you some bedding here.” Ned gestured for them to follow him, ever his friendly self. 

Once they were out of earshot Michelle's glare snapped towards Peter. “What the hell?”

“I couldn’t just leave them on the side of the road! There are hundreds, maybe thousands of Growlers just strolling around Queens – they’d be dead within days!” Peter shot back.

“You just have to go fuck everything up, don’t you Parker?” Flash snarled, his shoulder roughly knocking against Peters as he went past. 

Peter tried to hold in a wince as it jostled the broken wrist he had managed to keep still for so long.

Michelle’s gaze dug into him. “What’s wrong with your arm?”

“Nothing.” Peter mumbled. He was so tired of everyone being mad at him.

“Are you seriously going to do this again? I thought we were done with the lying!”

Peter felt the anger in him rise again, the exhaustion and pain wearing down his patience. “Can you just lay off me for two seconds?”

Michelle let out a humourless laugh. “Fine. Go deal with it yourself. I don’t give a shit anyway.” She turned her head and started to walk towards the others before she could see the hurt look on his face. She already felt guilt pooling in her stomach, but she pushed it away, choosing to focus on the anger instead.

Peter watched her walk away, slightly dejected that she had actually left him, and realised with a huff that this was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, I wasn't feeling so confident about this chapter, so sorry if it doesn't seem up to my usual standard. Hope you enjoyed anyway :)). 
> 
> Comments and Kudos are much appreciated!


	6. Chapter 6

Ned was carrying bags of food and drinks over to their usual spot, while Aiden carried a big pile of blankets over next to him. Ned was rambling on as usual, and she doubted Aiden was listening but she was still grateful he seemed to be trying.

Imani was already sitting crossed legged on a blanket, inhaling a bag of crisps like she hadn’t eaten in days.

“I’m MJ” Michelle said confidently as she stuck out a hand. He gave her a small smile before shaking her hand, Michelle taking note of his large muscles as he did so. She did the same with the little girl, Imani, laughing a little when she shook it a little too hard to seem intimidating.

“I’m Ned.” Ned said between gulps of soda. “And this is Flash.” He pointed at Flash who was sat a little further away from him, sulking into his food.

Peter joined them a few minutes later, the blood that was by his ear wiped away. He cautiously sat down on the group and tried to avoid eye contact.

It took a little while for them to overcome the awkward small talk, but by the time night was once again overtaking the skies and there little corner was being lit up by the fairy lights, they were finally starting to warm up to the new additions. 

If anything, Peter thought that Michelle and Aiden were being a little too friendly. Michelle rarely touched people, especially those she didn’t know, but there she was, gently grazing his arm with hers as they huddled together for warmth. She was smiling too, and usually Peter cherished that sight, but definitely not when _he_ was causing it. 

“How old even are you?” Flash said. Even he had started to engage in conversation.

“I’m nineteen.” Aiden replied.

“And I’m nearly nine!” Imani cut in, feeling a little left out.

“What about you guys?”

“We are seventeen. We are all in the same class at high school.” Ned said.

“Wait – how long have you been Spiderman?” Aiden looked confused.

“A few years. I got my powers when I was fourteen.” Peter hadn’t said much for most of the evening, both Flash and Michelle’s words looping in his head. _You’re just a fucking freak. I don’t give a shit anyway._

“Damn. You guys got any other hobbies?”

Ned jumped at the chance to geek out a little. “Well me and Peter are really good at science, so we do cool experiments all the time. We also like to read comics and watch superhero movies. Oh! We also love to play with Legos!”

Peter face palmed. He was starting to feel very threatened by Aiden, who had only been here a few hours and everyone already like him better. “Thanks for making us sound cool, Ned.”

Flash laughed, the same laugh he used when he used to bully him. “Peter and Ned are nerds.”

“I still read comic books all the time.” Aiden said, surprising the whole group. “And laser tag is still probably my favourite kind of birthday party.”

“Is that how you were able to shoot all those Growlers with perfect aim?” Peter couldn’t deny that the older boy was interesting.

Aiden chuckled. “Yeah, I guess so. I got a job at a Laser tag place about a year ago, so I have had lots of practice.”

“You guys should have seen it!” Flash turned to Michelle and Ned. “He was like bang bang and suddenly they were all dead! He totally saved us.”

Peter thought that was a bit unfair. Sure, Aiden had helped them a lot – but he was the one that saved Aiden and Imani in the first place!

“I mean I was only able to do that because Peter saved us first. It was seriously amazing when you swung in.” Aiden said and Peter gave him a warm smile. He was having conflicting feelings. Aiden seemed like a genuinely nice guy which made it very hard to be angry at him. He knew he was just jealous - jealous that Michelle was laughing at his jokes and teasing him like she used to do to Peter.

“Oh please.“ Flash said with an eye roll. “You both crashed to the floor after he misdirected a web. It’s pure luck he didn’t kill you by accident.” 

Peter stared at the floor again as no one jumped in to defend him. He was used to Flash being cruel, but usually the others would stick up for him. But then again, it wasn’t far from the truth. If peter hadn’t twisted in the air before they hit the ground, Aiden could have broken all his bones or died on impact.

He looked away and spotted Imani curled up in a sleeping bag, her braids draping across her face. She was deep asleep, and Peter smiled at how peaceful she looked. The small girl was only eight – she didn’t deserve any of this. None of them did.

“What about you? Any hobbies?” Aiden turned to Michelle.

“I like to draw.” She said simply.

“Wow, that’s amazing. Art is incredibly difficult you must be really talented.” Aiden praised her. Peter scowled at the comment – why didn’t he just ask her to marry him already?

Michelle blushed and looked down to her lap, a little star struck. Okay, so maybe Peter was a lot jealous. He liked Michelle a lot and was starting to think maybe she liked him too, well, he had been until she started practically throwing herself at a guy she’s known for two minutes. 

Mr Perfect had to come along with his perfect body, and his perfect voice, and his perfect personality. Peter looked between the two a little while longer until he couldn’t bare it any longer and stood up, muttering some excuse about needing to use the bathroom.

He was a little concerned his wrist was still hurting so much, so he decided to venture off to the pharmacy at the back of the store to look at it a little more closely. He shuffled through the well-stocked cabinets behind the counter but couldn’t find much that would be actually useful.

His wrist was swollen and an angry red, and by looking at it more closely Peter could tell the bone had shifted. He was going to have to reset it – this day just kept getting worse and worse.

He sat up against the wall as he held his wrist loosely in his other hand, trying to take calming breathes. Feeling exhaustion wash over him, Peter was moments away from changing his mind and leaving his wonky wrist as it was, choosing to shut his eyes instead.

But then he heard the faint laughter which was unmistakably Michelle’s. With Aiden in the group it was evident the rest didn’t need him anymore. He wasn’t one to seek attention, but after the shitty day he had had, he didn’t want to be alone and no one had come to check on him. Maybe it was selfish, to crave comfort from people who were probably struggling as much as he was.

Feeling anger stir him on, he snapped the bone back into its correct position without thinking twice. The searing pain was immediate, and Peter clenched his teeth and pressed his face against his shoulder as he let out a short scream. It was muffled by his jacket, so he hoped the others didn’t hear. 

He felt an overwhelming urge to sleep. So, he gave in. His eyes drifted shut as he lay sitting up against the cracked wall, surrounded by bandages and tape he didn’t get around to using. But although he was so _freaking_ tired, he couldn’t seem to sleep. His whole body felt like lead and he didn’t think he would be able to move if he wanted to, and that coupled with a banging headache was starting to make him feel nauseous.

Peter knew it was the beginnings of a sensory overload – something he was way too familiar with. But this time he didn’t have May or Tony to bring him warm soup and whisper words of comfort.

His clothes felt scratchy and his ears were picking up the jumbled sounds of voices mixed with the howling wind. 

He must have sat there for a while, drifting between sleep and pain, because suddenly he could hear a pair of footsteps approaching him. He hesitantly cracked an eye open and was glad to find he could see without screaming, even though it was still uncomfortable.

Peter shut his eyes in frustration at seeing Michelle and Flash looking down at him. He really didn’t feel like talking to the two people he knew were mad at him.

“What?” Peter said, and okay, he was being a little rude, but when his wrist was pulsing with pain and each of his senses were slowly heightening, he couldn’t find it in him to care.

“Why are you being such a dick?” Michelle said. She never liked to dance around subjects.

Peter blew out a long breath and didn’t say anything. 

“Stop shutting me out!”

“Why don’t you just go back to hanging out with perfect Aiden?” _Oops_. Peter hadn’t meant to say that.

“Aiden – are you fucking serious? You need to grow up.” 

“Can we not do this now?” Peter couldn’t tell whether he was going to scream or puke or pass out.

“You can’t try to avoid everything in your life, Parker.” Flash said as Michelle looked like she was going to explode from anger. 

More silence.

“What’s wrong with you? Say something!” Michelle knew she needed to calm down, but Peter had been freezing her out since they got back, and she couldn’t take it anymore.

Peter opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t hold back the sob that escaped him. He tried to supress it, but it was like once he had started, he couldn’t stop. The dam had been broken. Shattered.

“What if I have no one left?” He whispered between cries. He just couldn’t stop thinking about everyone he had let down. The events of the day and his past traumas were jumbling up in his head, all fighting for his attention.

_Mum. Dad. Uncle Ben. Aunt May. Mr Stark._

_“What’s wrong with you?”_

_Mum. Dad._

_“You’re just a fucking freak.”_

_Uncle ben. Aunt May._

_“I don’t give a shit anyway.”_

_Mr Stark. Mr Stark._

_“I wanted you to be better.”_

_Aunt May. Mr Stark._

_“Stay with me, Uncle Ben. Please!”_

_Mum. Dad._

_“We won, Mr Stark.”_

_Mr Stark. Uncle Ben._

_“I’m down here! I’m stuck – I, I can’t move!”_

_Aunt May. Mr Stark. Uncle Ben. Michelle. Ned. Flash._

He could barely breathe as tears streamed down his face and his whole body shook.

Michelle’s anger turned to concern and regret within seconds. She had never seen peter like this, looking so defeated. And now that rage wasn’t clouding her vision, she suddenly realised how pale he looked, drops of sweat collecting across his forehead. Or the way he was now cradling his wrist which had become darker and angrier since she last saw it.

“Shit. Peter – I’m sorry.” She moved closer to him, but he flinched violently, backing up further into the wall.

Flash did not see that coming. And again, that horrid feeling of guilt swirled in his stomach as he looked at the mess Peter had become.

“I – I’ll get Ned.” Flash said and hurried away. He couldn’t bare to see Peter like this. He was the one that was always protecting them, always remaining positive.

Ned appeared a few moments later, instantly crouching down to Peter’s level.

Michelle realised she hadn’t moved and hadn’t said anything since Peter had flinched away from her. Emotions and feelings really weren’t her thing, and she knew for a fact that they weren’t Peter’s either, so for once in her life she had absolutely no idea what to do. She noticed how Ned was gentle and hesitant with him, like he had practiced this too many times.

He whispered reassuring words to him and held his hand. Peter looked vacant as he whimpered quietly and she couldn’t tell if he really knew what was going on, but he was no longer in hysterics, so Michelle saw it as a good sign.

She almost looked away from the intimate moment between the two as at that moment she realised that Ned and Peter relied on each other more than she could possibly imagine.

Cautiously, Ned helped Peter off the floor, and put an arm under his for support as he was practically dead weight. Peter still hadn’t said anything or made any indication to show that he was aware of anything, but he had stopped crying completely and instead his forehead was scrunched together in pain.

“What’s happening to him?” Michelle suddenly said.

“Sensory overload - maybe a panic attack as well. I’ll explain in a minute. Right now, we need to get him to bed and try get his temperature down.” Ned whispered as he practically carried Peter over to the display bed that had been using.

Aiden noticed them approaching and stood up, concern evident on his face. “Is he okay? What happened?”

“I’ll explain later. I need you to get him a bucket of cold water and a cloth.” This was the only time Ned wasn’t rambling. “Flash, go find some sunglasses – the darkest ones you can find – and some noise cancelling headphones.”

The two didn’t say a word as they left on a quick jog down the different aisles. Michelle helped Ned to carefully manoeuvre him into bed, pulling the covers over him. He let out a small moan of pain every now and then, his head tossing back and forth.

A few minutes later, everyone, apart from Imani who was still fast asleep on the couch, was sitting around the bed watching Peter who had thankfully fallen asleep. 

“Peter just had a sensory overload. A pretty bad one.” Ned began.

“What does that mean?” Aiden asked.

“Basically, every now and then Peter’s powers make him really sick. Our theory is that when Peter is in too much emotional trauma, his body thinks he is in danger, so all his senses heighten as if he was preparing for a fight. But then they don’t know when to stop so they just keeping heightening until it’s unbearable. Everything is too loud and too bright, touching anything is painful, and he usually throws up.

“He had them a lot when his Uncle died, sometimes in the school bathroom or after a night patrolling so I got good at dealing with them. He had been getting better, but they still come back every now and then.”

They all tried to take in this new information. “What do you think triggered it this time?” Aiden said, the most collected out of the group.

“I was really angry at him. started shouting when he wasn’t answering me.” Michelle said quietly. The guilt was clawing at her stomach and making her feel sick.

“I was a dick to him when we were out. I called him a freak.” Flash didn’t make eye contact with anyone.

The only reason Ned didn’t shout at him was so not to disturb Peter.

“I also think going to his apartment affected him more than he let on.” Flash added.

“He really goes through this a lot? Why did he never say anything?” Michelle whispered.

“He wants people to think he is strong.” Ned chuckled fondly. “He is going to be so embarrassed when he wakes up in the morning.”

“Until then we should probably get some sleep.” Aiden said.

Ned and Flash nodded as they made there way over to their individual sleeping slot. They switched the fairy lights off, worried they would run out of battery if they left them on all night.

Hesitantly, Michelle reached her hand out and gently grazed Peters fingers. When he didn’t stir, she enveloped his hand in hers and bought it to her mouth, giving it a gentle kiss. The fact the darkness stopped anyone from seeing the action was the only reason she let out that affectionate side of herself. She knew when the sun came back up, she would have to go back to uncaring, collected Michelle. But, for now, she was tired, and she had to let the wall down.

Tomorrow was a new day, and she was determined to make it a better one than the shit show this one turned out to be.


	7. Chapter 7

_He was being crushed._

_“I’m down here! I’m stuck – I, I can’t move!” Thick dust filled his mouth as he gasped for breath that wouldn’t come. The pressure across his back was getting heavier and more unbearable by the second, the weight of it slowly and agonizingly cracking each of his bones._

_He screamed. Panic was overriding logic as he struggled against the concrete and rubble that surrounded every part of him. No one knew he was down here. He was going to die and Mr Stark would never find his body and May would lose another family member and it would all be because he wasn’t strong enough._

_Peter thrashed from where he lay, pinned, trying anything to loosen the weight above him. He felt a pressure on his shoulders, holding him down more and his arm connected with something._

_“Peter!” He heard a voice… he knew that voice._

His eyes snapped open as he lunged forward, the crushing weight holding him down suddenly vanishing.

He breathed heavily the air that was no longer clogging his throat with dust, and realised that he was still in the same grocery store, not trapped under a collapsed warehouse. His eyes darted around the wide space now that he was fully aware. He was tangled in his bedsheets, surrounded by his own sweat. Ned and Flash were staring at him, wide eyed, obviously unsure how to approach him. He looked to his right to see Michelle lying on the floor surrounded by a stack of knocked over products. 

The realisation sent a jolt through his muscles. Michelle was the voice he heard during the nightmare, and Michelle was what he hit when he was thrashing around, hence her on the floor, also wide eyed and slightly fearful.

“Oh my god, I – I’m so sorry! I didn’t – “ He was trying to apologise but all that left his mouth was a stuttering mess of jumbled up words. He slid of the bed in one swift movement, discarding the sweaty sheets and crouched on the floor beside her.

He scanned her up and down and was relieved to see she seemed to be frozen from shock, not an injury. Peter couldn’t believe he hit her. He actually _hit_ her. The guilt was tearing him apart already.

He hadn’t even realised the stream of apologies hadn’t stopped falling from his mouth until Michelle gripped his arm tightly and the words died in his throat. For a moment they both stared into their concern-filled eyes, as if they were the only ones in the room.

“Are you okay?” Peter muttered out.

“Are _you_ okay?” Michelle replied instantly.

“Fine.” He whispered, almost cringing at out unconvincing that sounded. “Yep – absolutely fine. Great, even. I’m feeling great.” _Get it together, Parker._

“Peter…”

“No, really, I’m all good. I just woke up from reliving one of my worst memories to find that I hit and nearly killed one of my best friends – “

“You weren’t going to kill me – “

“What if I hit you in the head? With my strength, that’s all it takes.” Even Peter could recognise that he was panicking now. He could see where she was rubbing at her shoulder, and he was both so relived he hadn’t broken anything yet so guilty he had even touched her in the first place.

“But you didn’t hit her in the head.” Ned said from where he was standing at the foot of the bed. “MJ is completely fine. It’s you we are worried about.”

Peter did not like these conversations. The ‘we know you’re struggling and we want to help’ kind of conversations that always ended up in yelling and deflecting. He had one too many of these with Mr Stark and Aunt May. 

“Why would you be worried about me?” Peter said, trying to sound innocent but knowing his voice was too high to be calm. He almost laughed when he heard himself say it out loud.

“Last night…” Flash said, not sure how to find the right words.

Peter had been so flustered by the nightmare and worried for Michelle that he hadn’t even thought about last night. But suddenly all the previous events from the day before came rushing back and he groaned in a mixture of embarrassment and guilt, his head falling into his hands. “Shit… Last night…”

“Yep.” Ned’s voice was strained. “I know you had a sensory overload, but I don’t know what bought it on so quickly. You seemed fine in the evening.”

Peter slowly slid back into the bed and leant against the headboard as he closed his eyes, knowing there was no way of wiggling out of this one. He peeked an eye open and saw the three pair of eyes on him, and it was then that he realised they were missing two.

He sat up quickly. “Wait, where are Aiden and Imani?” 

“We have ran out of water since most of it was gone before we got here so they have gone to a store a few streets away.” Michelle replied as she stood up. She noticed Peter’s look of alarm. “They took the car they will be okay. Left about an hour ago. Now, stop changing the subject.”

Peter blew out a long breathe and dug through the inside if the jacket pocket. He pulled out the folded photo he had stuffed in it the day before and opened it. For a moment he looked into the eyes of his lost family before handing it over to Michelle, avoiding eye contact 

“It’s my family. My mum, my dad, Uncle Ben, Aunt May and me.”

The three studied the photo. Flash looked up first. “I don’t see the problem. You’re lucky you have such a nice family.”

“Three out of five of the people in that photo are dead, Flash. So, I wouldn’t say I’m ‘lucky’.” Peter still didn’t look up, instead choosing to pick at the loose thread of the bandage that had been wrapped around his wrist.

Flash suddenly felt very, _very_ guilty. He hadn’t realised Peters uncle was dead. Sure, he knew his parents passed away when he was little, but since he probably couldn’t remember them, he didn’t see the massive deal. All the special treatment and sympathetic glances that he had been so jealous of started to make sense. 

“I don’t know what I’m going to do if she doesn’t make it.” Peter whispered. “I can’t lose anyone else.”

No one knew what to say to that. They could try reassuring him she would be okay, but they all knew that would be based on empty promises and pretty lies.

“You’re not a freak.” Flash blurted out. If he didn’t say something now, he wasn’t sure he ever would. “I don’t know why I said you were because you’re not.”

“Is that your idea of an apology?” Ned huffed.

“I’m sorry, Parker.” Flash said under his breathe. 

Peter heard him and smiled. “Sorry, I didn’t quite here that.” He said with a mischievous grin, thankful for an excuse to lighten things up a bit.

“I said I’m sorry.” Flash muttered, his cheeks growing red but smirking a little anyway. Ned laughed and patted him on the back.

“I’m also sorry.” Michelle added, surprising everyone. “I shouldn’t have shouted at you. That was a bit shitty of me.”

Peter was so overcome with gratitude that he didn’t know what else to say, so just smiled, and hoped Michelle understood.

A little while later, Aiden and Imani returned from their supplies trip, arms full of water bottles. They quickly greeted them before busying themselves somewhere else in the store, while Peter started to pull out the communicator he had retrieved yesterday.

He sorted through some of the loose wires and tidied the device up, his many hours spent in robotics club becoming useful and turned the dial at the top. At first nothing happened, but slowly, a quite TV static startled to whistle out the machine. Peter twisted and pulled a few knobs, trying to focus the sound, but all that did was make that static noise louder.

He fiddled with the communicator for about an hour, both desperation and panic starting to eat away at him as nothing worked. Peter realised the device wasn’t going to work and in a burst of frustration threw it at the shelf opposite him. Thanks to his super strength, it smashed on impact, the broken parts falling to the floor.

Peter felt the beginning of regret immediately as he stared at its crumpled form, knowing it was his fault they couldn’t find help because he wasn’t smart enough. They were relying on him and what did he go and do? Destroy their last ray of hope because he was having a childish tantrum.

Feeling defeated, he slumped back against the wall and reached out for his mask that was peeking out his backpack. He didn’t know what urged him to do it, but he slipped the fabric over his face, knowing the familiar feel of it would ground him.

“Hello, Peter. It’s good to see you.”

Peter’s whole body jolted at the voice, his heart beating fast. 

“Peter, are you okay? You seem distressed.” Karen’s voice was loud and clear in his voice and Peter almost laughed from relief. He hadn’t even thought about his A.I, assuming it would be down like everything else. But then again, this was Stark technology – what did he expect?

“Karen!” Peter exclaimed, overjoyed. He hadn’t realised how much he missed hearing her every night.

“Hello, Peter.” 

“It’s so good to hear your voice! I didn’t I think ever would again.”

“It’s good to hear your voice too, Peter. You have a new message from Tony Stark. Would you like me to play it for you?”

Peter’s forehead crumpled in confusion. “A message from Mr Stark? When is it from?”

“Five days ago. Would you like me to play it for you?”

Peter tried not to be excited over the rising feeling of hope he felt churning in his stomach, knowing he would be crushed if it didn’t lead anywhere. “Yes! Play it, Karen!”

The face of the one and only Tony Stark popped up in his line of sight. The dark circles under his eyes gave away the pure exhaustion that seemed to wash through the older mans features, even though his eyes were moving back and forth, alert.

“Hey, Kid.”

Peter almost cried at hearing his voice. Even though it had only been a little over two weeks since he had last saw him, so much had happened between then and now, and Peter was craving comfort from him more than anything.

“I know this is a long shot, but I thought I’d give it a go anyway.” Tony’s voice was thick of emotion, like he was on the edge of giving up. “I’ve been looking all over for you, Pete – God, I haven’t stopped looking.” His eyes drifted downwards as he sucked in a breath. “I’m terrified that I won’t find you – terrified that you’re already – “ 

_Dead - one of them._

“But I’m not going to stop looking, so if you are listening to this, don’t give up. I mean come on; you’ve given me way too many grey hairs to stop now.” He huffed a small chuckle, but Peter could tell it was forced. Tony was silent for a while, and Peter thought he was going to end the video when he looked back up at the camera, right into Peter’s eyes. “I’m so sorry, Kid.” His voice cracked. “I was supposed to protect you. I was supposed to keep you safe!

“It’s just so hard – I’ve been going out in the suite every day but I can’t scan the areas because all the satellites are fucking down, and the whole world is in chaos and so many people are already dead –“ he was getting hysterical now. “- and I still can’t find you and I don’t know what to do!

He sighed, long and hard. “If by some miracle you get this, come to the safety zone in Colorado – I’ve pinpointed it on a map and sent it to Karen. I’ve been at the tower for the past week, sending survivors to any remaining care shelters, but they need me over there and I’m worried that searching for you is going to be a lot more difficult when I’m so far away. Please, stay alive. You know how grumpy I get when I don’t get my way.” Peter smiled despite the tears trickling down his face.

He paused for a few seconds again. 

“I love you, Kid.” A warmth spread through Peter’s chest as he soaked in the words. “I know I’ve never said it before because I’m shitty at the whole ‘emotions’ thing, but I really do.” Tony cleared his throat, composing himself. “Now you better get here fast – if Morgan has one more tantrum because she ‘wants her spider-brother back’, I’ll lose my mind. See you soon, Kid.” He smiled once more before his face disappeared, and the video message ended.

“Would you like me to save, replay, or file the message, Peter?” Karen’s voice was bright, as usual, but Peter barely heard her as he stared into nothing. The words from the message replayed over and over in his head, a seed of hope planting itself in his mind.

He listened to the message again. And again. And again. He replayed it so many times he could recite every word Tony said, and even started to answer back. If he tried hard enough, he could pretend they were having a conversation, but reality always slammed back into him like a punch in the stomach when the message ended.

Still, being able to say, “I love you too, Mr Stark,” felt so comforting it was worth the pain after. So, he listened to it again. And again. And again.

“Peter? Are you okay?” Michelle’s head poked out from the side of a shelf. He must have looked pathetic, slumped against a wall with his mask on, surrounded by broken pieces of metal and wires.

“I know where Mr Stark is.” Peter stated, slipping his mask off.

“What?” Michelle took a step towards him.

“I know where Mr Stark is.” He repeated. “He left me a message and I was able to listen to it through my mask.”

“Oh my god – what, where is he? Can you send a message back? Did he say anything about the safety zones?”

Peter stood up to meet him, his back aching from sitting down for so long. “He told me to go to the safety zone in Colorado and gave me directions. The message was recorded like five days ago, but I don’t think he would leave. I can’t send a message back, Karen said she has no signal here, but I might be able to when we get closer to the tower.”

“What about the other safety zones?” Michelle was known for being impatient.

“He said that he was sending survivors to the remaining zones. So I guess some are still intact- ” _But most of them are not._ “ – the drive down there will take a couple days so we should leave first thing tomorrow.”

“Oh my god.” A smile started to spread across Michelle’s face. “We’re going to be okay. We’re going to make it!” She didn’t think as she grabbed his arms and pulled him closer to her body in excitement.

Peter nodded his head frantically. “We’re going to be okay!” he laughed, pure joy overcoming him. _They were going to be okay._ Michelle laughed along with him and suddenly they were jumping up and down in the air like excited puppies, squealing and still holding onto each other.

They came to a stop, still smiling broadly and gripping each other’s arms, their faces only inches apart. Michelle stopped breathing as Peter leaned in, catching her of guard.

His lips hesitantly brushed against hers, the gentle kiss sending the butterflies in her stomach into a frenzy. He pulled away just as quickly, regret evident on his face.

“I’m sorry – I, err, I don’t know why I – “

Michelle leaned in and gave him one longer, and deeper kiss, shutting him up and leaving him stunned. She pulled away slowly and opened her eyes to see Peter’s flushed face staring back at her in awe – or shock, she couldn’t really tell. 

“Let’s go tell the others.” She whispered, as their faces were still so close together. She pulled away from his grip and walked away, leaving him frozen in place. Michelle smiled at herself, happy that some part of her teenage life hadn’t been completely ruined.

“Come on, loser,” she called back when he still hadn’t moved a muscle from his place. That seemed to jolt him out of his shock though, as he was quickly jogging up to walk beside her, his cheeks still glowing a rosy red as he failed to hide a small smile.

Maybe the end of the world wasn’t going to be _too_ bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos appreciated!!!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sup guys :))
> 
> A little more fluff before shit really hits the fan.
> 
> There are a few sexual references in this chapter but there is nothing graphic and there is absolutely no smut. I probably don't even need to put a warning but i thought just in case.

Things were _finally_ starting to look up for Peter.

No one was mad at him, they might survive the apocalypse after all, and MJ had kissed him back – _on the lips!_ He had a slight skip in his step as he made his way over to ned, who was shuffling through their remaining supplies.

Peter and Michelle had told the group about their plan to make their way to the safety zone in Colorado, and they had all agreed to leave the next day. So here they were, packing up everything they would need for the journey and preparing to say goodbye to their temporary home.

“Dude!” Peter hissed excitedly, looking around to make sure no one could hear them. It was dark outside, so it was hard to see far.

“Do you think we should bring toilet paper with us?” Ned rifled through his backpack, completely oblivious to Peters excitement. “At first I thought there was no point but then I remembered that sometimes long journeys give me an upset stomach, and you know how my mum always says it’s better to be prepared than – “

“ _Dude!_ ” Peter gripped his arms, so he looked up at him. “MJ and I kissed last night!” His voice came out as a squeak.

“What? No way! This is amazing, man! I knew it – didn’t I say that she liked you? From the beginning I called it and you were all like _‘no Ned you are being stupid’_ but I was, like, totally right! This is so exciting!” Ned barely breathed as he immediately matched Peter’s excitement.

“I know right! Do you think I should ask her out? Wait – no, that so stupid of me. It’s the apocalypse! She would never want to go out with me. Even if it wasn’t the apocalypse she probably wouldn’t go out with me, I mean, it’s not like I’m the most –“

“Dude, you’re spiralling.”

Peter shut his mouth, Ned was right, of course. Besides, they had bigger things to worry about than silly teenage dates. He would think about that later.

“You’re right. I’m just going to take it slow.” Peter shrugged.

Ned nodded, his smile widening. “I can’t believe you kissed MJ!”

“Me neither, to be honest."

“But seriously…” Ned’s face suddenly fell, and Peter leaned in. “Do you think I should bring toilet roll? It would be so embarrassing if – “

“Just bring the toilet roll!” Peter huffed, rolling his eyes.

***

Peter had just finished gathering what he hoped was enough food and drink to last them all a couple of days, when he felt a gentle tap on his arm. He spun around swiftly, not used to people being able to sneak up on him.

A pair of big, innocent eyes stared up at him. Imani was shuffling her feet side to side as she fiddled with one of the pink bobbles that secured her braid.

“Oh, hey, Imani.” Peter said, trying to sound friendly. When he thought about it, he had only heard the small girl speak a few times, and he didn’t think he had had a proper conversation with her yet.

“Hi.” Her voice was quiet, shy.

“What’s up?” Peter tried to keep casual, so to not make her more uncomfortable than she already seemed to be. “Anything I can help with?”

“Aiden said you’re smart.” She looked back up at him, a little more confident.

Peter shrugged. “I guess so. What do you need?”

She lifted up her left hand, showcasing the Frozen watch that was fastened to her wrist. “It’s broken.”

Peter smiled when he realised what she was after.

“You want me to try fix it for you?” He offered, guessing she might not say it out right.

Hesitantly, she nodded and slipped it off her wrist.

“Let’s have a look.” Peter took the watch from her and examined it. It had a thick light blue border, with a matching blue strap like many children’s watches, but the edges were slightly faded and discoloured by dirt. The two hands weren’t moving, so peter assumed it had run out of batteries. He dug into the font pocket of his backpack, remembering the batteries he had slipped in earlier for the flashlights.

He noticed Imani standing off to the side, looking slightly lost. “Want to come sit next to me?” He patted the spot on his bed.

For a moment she hesitated, and Peter thought she might refuse, but after some contemplation she shuffled over and hopped up beside him. “I love your watch by the way, it’s very pretty.” 

“Aiden got it for me last year.” Her eyes followed his movements as he unscrewed the bottom of the watch with delicate fingers.

“Oh yeah? I’m actually quite jealous – do you think he would get one for me?” Peter smiled as she giggled.

“It would look silly on you!” 

Peter slapped a hand over his heart dramatically, feigning hurt. He counted it as a win as her laughter grew. “You’re probably right. It looks much better on you.” He slipped the cover back on, satisfied when the hands started to tick again. He just had to set it to the right time. “So, who is your favourite character in Frozen?”

Imani obviously already knew her answer as she immediately sat up straighter. “Elsa! She has magical powers that can make snowman _and_ she is a princess which is _so_ cool!”

Peter chuckled at her enthusiasm. “Hmm, that’s a good answer. I always liked Kristoff – do you like him?”

Imani’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “Sure, he is okay. But he is also a _boy_ , and boys are annoying.”

“Hey! I’m a boy!” Peter defended himself, still laughing.

“And that probably means you are annoying. Trust me, all the boys in my grade are stupid so I know what I’m talking about. Even Aiden gets on my nerves.” She crossed her arms.

Peter chuckled again. “I guess you must be right.”

“I thought you were supposed to be smart.” She was so sassy and cute, Peter couldn’t even be mad.

“I am!” Peter couldn’t believe he was losing an argument with an eight-year-old. He reached over and tickled her stomach, earning a shriek of laughter from the small girl. She felt backwards onto the bed, tears of laughter pooling in her eyes as she squirmed under Peter’s tickling. 

“Say I’m smart! Say it!” Peter was also laughing now as he tickled under her neck.

“Okay! You’re smart!” She yelled. Peter released her and she lay on the bed, breathlessly giggling.

Slipping off the bed and onto one knee, Peter bowed his head and presented her the fixed watch. “For you, my princess.”

Imani sat back up and accepted the watch, her eyes growing wide as she realised it was fixed. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Peter was about to dismiss her hen he was cut off by her body colliding with his in a tight hug. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back, smiling at himself. “No problem, Princess.”

***

Peter gathered a few leftover meals from the shelf for what would be their last meal in the store. His enhanced hearing picked up the sound of Michelle laughing, and although he wasn't usually nosey, he couldn’t help but listen in.

Once again, Aiden was complimenting her, telling her how much he loved her natural hair. Peter scowled at the obvious attempt to flirt with her. The familiar feeling of jealousy swirled in his stomach and he didn’t think he could push it away anymore – how could he not be jealous?

Aiden was very handsome, what with his muscular tall build, his deep voice and the badass energy he seemed to always radiate. And sure – him and Michelle had shared a kiss, but did it really mean anything? Was it a kiss out of pity? Did she regret it? Does she wish it was with Aiden instead?

_Dude, you’re spiralling._ Peter remembered what Ned had said earlier, and he was right. Peter was bit of an over-thinker. Especially when it came to Michelle.

His ears picked up the muffled footsteps of Michelle walking away, over to where Flash and Ned were checking for money in the cashiers and knew that this was his opening to talk to Aiden alone.

Peter strolled over, tying to appear casual, but realising how he probably looked very tense and awkward. Aiden was flipping a small knife in his hands as he sat on the edge of the sofa, his eyes flicking up briefly as he saw Peter coming over.

“Hey.” Peter nodded.

“Hey.” Aiden said, putting down his knife.

“Can I talk to you for a minute?” Peter tried to keep the squeak out of his voice.

“What’s up?”

“Its about MJ.” Peter hadn’t realised he was wringing his hand together like he was trying to dry a towel.

Aiden’s eyebrows furrowed. “What about MJ? Is she okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, she is fine.” Peter paused for a moment, but suddenly the words spilled out of his mouth like a stream. “Do you like MJ? Like, _like_ like MJ? Because its cool if you do – well actually it’s not really cool if you do because her and I kind of have thing going, well, when I say thing its not, like, a _massive_ thing and it’s not like we have talked about it but it’s still a thing, and I feel like you are kind of, maybe, I don’t know, but I get the feeling that you – “

“You think I like MJ?” Aiden cut in, his face mixed between being amused and disbelieving, as if he didn’t know what Peter was talking about, and as if he hadn’t been flirting with Michelle for the past few days.

Peter stared at him, his face straight. “You do, don’t you?”

Aiden burst out laughing, clutching his stomach. Peter stood there, shocked and unamused, as he started to regret talking to Aiden.

“Peter, I’m gay.”

_Oh_. “Oh.” Peter’s eyes widened. “I mean that’s cool! I just wasn’t expecting that but it’s totally cool.” Peter cringed at how flustered he sounded.

“I think MJ is really cool, and I like her a lot. But not like that. Besides, she is totally into you.” Aiden went back to flipping his knife skilfully.

“What? Really? Did she say anything or are you just guessing? Because if you are just guessing – “

“ _Don’t worry._ You need to learn to chill.”

Peter nodded, pursing his lips to stop the flow of questions that wanted to tumble out.

The others rounded the corner to greet them, saving Peter from accidentally embarrassing himself ay further.

They sat round munching on the various snacks they had managed to find among the empty shelves as they told stories of their life before the apocalypse.

A comfortable silence had settled among them when Aiden spoke. “So, MJ and Peter.” Peter looked up at him as he took a large gulp from his can of coke. “You guys had sex yet?”

The fizzy coke splattered across the marble floor as Peter snorted involuntary, so taken back by the question. The bubbles had gone up his nose and he couldn’t contain the coughing fit that followed, which only added to the redness of his cheeks.

Michelle had gone completely still, as a warm flush coloured her cheeks while Ned and Flash burst into a fit of giggles at their embarrassment.

“No!” Peter spluttered, avoiding eye contact with Michelle.

Aiden chuckled. “I guess that explains why I could cut the sexual tension between you two with one of my knives.” He picked up his knife and slashed it through the air, by example.

If it was possible, Peter grew even darker, the tips of his ears going a bright pink. “There isn’t – we aren’t– ” Peter’s words died in his throat as he tried – and failed - to compose himself.

“Aiden’s right. You too should just get it over with! Hey, the red Ferrari if parked outside if you want some time alone…?” Flash sneered, making kissy noises.

Peter tried to say something, but to his horror, nothing came out.

“Shut up, Flash.” Michelle glared daggers at everyone in the group apart from Peter, who she made sure to avoid.

Imani rounded the corner in a sprint, not noticing Peter’s embarrassment or how Ned and Flash were still trying to hold in their laughter. She skidded slightly as she tried to stop so abruptly and held up her hand which was clasping a CD.

It was a Frozen disk with the musical tracks, the kind nobody really used anymore. “Can we play this on the way to Colorado?” She said, giving her best puppy dog eyes.

Aiden looked to the group, silently asking if that was okay. 

Peter nodded and smiled at her. “I don’t see why not. It will be a good chance to show off my musical talents.”

Ned scoffed. “Musical talents?”

“I was in the school band!”

“Putting down your name to get university point does not count as musical talent. You don’t even play an instrument!”

“Good point.” Peter popped a chip into his mouth.

Soon after they decided it was a good idea to get an early night. It was going to be a long drive so it was best to leave early. Aiden occupied the couch, Imani nestled between his arms while Ned and Flash shuffled into the sleeping bags they had been using for the last couple of days. 

Peter and Michelle slipped under the covers of the double bed, Michelle sending anyone that looked at them silent death threats before they could make a comment about them sharing a bed.

They all fell asleep quickly, leaving the store in silence. Morning came in no time, and Peter blinked awake slowly.

An instant warmth spread up his neck as he realised he had his arm draped across Michelle, his whole front pressing against her back. Somehow, in the middle of the night, he had started to _spoon_ Michelle.

His head whipped around, and he noticed with a sigh of relief that he was the first to wake up, so no one had seen him in this embarrassing position. Horror dawned on him as the feeling of Michelle pressed up against him was making him feel, and making his body react, a certain type of way. He needed to get out this bed _now._

He shifted slightly but froze instantly when it caused Michelle to move a little, snuggling up against him even more, which was doing no favours to his growing arousal. He saw Ned groan on his spot on the floor as he slowly sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

“Ned!” Peter hissed, not moving an itch so he didn’t wake Michelle – she could not see him like this. “ _Ned!_ ”

Finally, Ned’s head slowly turned towards Peter, his eyes widening and becoming more alert as he took his Peter and Michelle’s position. A smile found his lips and he lifted up a hand to point to them.

Ned opened his mouth to say something, but Peter cut him off. “Look, you can make fun of me later. But right now, I need your help!”

“Why?” Ned asked, finding this far too amusing.

“I’ve got a bit of a situation!” Peter whispered urgently.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a guy problem. You know, _downstairs._ ” He nodded his head to the lower half of his body.

Ned’s mouth fell open as the realisation hit him and he tried to stifle a giggle. Now that he noticed it, Peter looked more flushed and panicked than usual. “Just move out the way.” Ned whispered back.

“I can’t! When I tried, she just held me tighter!”

Ned would have felt bad for Peter if this whole situation wasn’t so fucking funny. 

“You need to get me out before she wakes up! She will notice!”

“Okay, okay.” Ned relented and walked over to the bed. “We are scientists. If we use the law of physics, we might be able to – “

Michelle shifted again in her sleep.

“Ned!” Peter’s voice came out a strangled, high-pitch squeak.

“I’m going to pull you out on three. If we do it fast enough she won’t even realise.” Ned placed his hand on peter’s shoulders and arms.

“Okay, just do it!” Peter gasped.

“Three, two, one – “

Ned yanked him hard and Peter flung out of the bed, landing on the floor with a thump. Michelle jolted out of sleep at the sudden movement and sat up quickly.

“I agree with you, Peter. They are really nice bedsheets.” Ned said, smoothing down the sheets on the bed he was studying quickly.

Peter nodded, still flustered. “Yeah… really nice... bedsheets.”

“You guys are losers.” Michelle said, their weird behaviour seeming normal. She watched as Peter scrambled up from the floor, holding a pillow over his crotch tightly. “Peter – “

“I’m – uh – going to the toilet!” Peter squeaked, his voice breaking. Michelle was about to say something, but he was already out of sight. She looked over at Ned, confused.

“Peter has really bad bladder control.” Ned supplied.

***

The sun was shining as the group of six settled themselves into a van they had found in the parking lot. They all agreed they would take shifts in driving with Aiden going first. The first few hours speeding along the empty roads went quickly as they alternated between blasting Frozen songs and playing various road trip games.

They had their first pit stop at an abandoned gas station to stretch their legs and have a toilet break, everyone glad that they didn’t run into any Growlers. Michelle took the driver’s seat next, proving that she was unsurprisingly the best driver out of all of them. When Imani started to grow wrestles, they dug into their bag of snacks.

By the time they were on the highway, which was much more empty than the destroyed streets that they had been on before, it was growing dark. Imani was the first to crash out.

Aiden looked a little dejected as he saw she had nuzzled into Peter’s side instead of his, and in response Peter stuck his tongue out at the older boy. The others drifted off soon after, apart from Ned who was now driving. Peter drifted in and out, finding it difficult to sleep when Michelle wasn’t next to him. She was in the passenger seat, her eyes shut, and her legs propped up on the dashboard.

They had debated finding somewhere to sleep and resuming the road trip the next day, but they all decided they wanted to get to Colorado as soon as possible. Peter wasn’t complaining – he was so excited at the possibility of seeing Mr Stark that being stuffed up in this van wasn’t bothering him too much.

Peter normally hated long car rides. Ever since the Spider-bite he had what felt like a limitless amount of energy, so sitting still for a straight day was always a no-go. He smiled as he remembered when Mr Stark had picked him up after school that one time. The car drive to the tower wasn’t long but Peter still couldn’t stop bouncing around in his seat and talking a mile a minute. At one point, Mr Stark had grilled him and threatened to give him a drug test because he was convinced Peter was on crack.

Soon it was morning and Peter took the wheel, enjoying the feeling of the golden sun hitting his face. Imani had insisted sitting up front with him and Peter didn’t mind. Since he fixed her watch she had grown attached to Peter, almost like a second brother.

“Alesha told Daniel that he saw _Rosie_ kissing _Caleb_ under the tree on our playground.”

“Hold up! Is this the same Rosie that was holding hands with Max?” Peter was very invested in the gossip that was going around Imani’s third grade class – well, the gossip that was going around their class before the apocalypse hit them.

“Yes!” Imani exclaimed. “I never liked Rosie, anyway, she said that I wasn’t smart enough to be the library monitor!”

“What?” Peter whisper-yelled, so as not to wake up the others who were still sleeping in the back. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one who hadn’t slept very well last night. “But you’re, like, the smartest eight-year-old I know!”

“Exactly! But it’s okay because Daniel defended me.” Imani smiled, dreamily.

Peter wiggled his eyebrow. “Does someone have a _crush?_ ”

“Eww! Gross – no!” She shook her head in disgust.

They continued to talk like that for a while, whether it was about Imani’s school friends or Peter’s adventures as Spiderman (excluding the not so child friendly details, of course). Gradually, the others woke up one at a time and joined in on their conversations, and before they knew it, it was past midday again and they were digging into their second lunch.

Peter checked every now and then with his mask that they were still heading in the right direction and was pleased to find that they should arrive at the safety zone before tomorrow.

Peter was driving along the highway, relaxed and content, when he felt it. 

The familiar tingle that itched at the back of neck and travelled down his spine. He was about to slow down to see where the danger was coming from when his Spidey-sense screamed at him, painfully.

His arm flew out, pushing Imani’s chest against the seat and shielding her from what was coming, when a force exploded out from beneath the van. Michelle’s scream was cut off as the van was flown into the air, flipping and landing on it’s back with a horrendous crash.

Peter must have blacked out for a moment because next thing he knew his head was throbbing painfully and he was still holding onto Imani, despite them being upside down. The glass around them had shattered and he could see the fire licking the side of the Van. The steering wheel had snapped in half from when Peter must have gripped it so tightly and the side Peter was on had crumpled in on itself, his whole left side feeling like a big bruise, but he ignored it and tried to asses the situation.

Imani seemed okay other than a few scrapes on the side of her face from the broken glass. She was sobbing openly, but that was too be expected.

“Everyone okay?” Peter croaked, hoping that the others heard him over the crackling of the flames and the churning of the vehicle. Peter smelt the unmistakable stench of gas and with a sharp intake of breath realised that they desperately needed to get out of here.

There was a chorus of short and hoarse replies, so Peter assumed everyone was fine other than some bumps and scratches. Using his sticky fingers, he pulled himself out of the van through the smashed window, wincing as he felt the shards of glass biting into his skin.

He rolled out across the road and raced around to the other side of the vehicle, pulling the door of it’s hinges. Peter held onto Imani’s waist and unfastened her seatbelt, holding her so she didn’t fall upside down. He tugged her out as gently as he could and tried to pull her away from any jagged glass. 

Once she was out safely, he pulled on the back doors of the van and they easily flew open. Due to having no chair or seatbelts in the back, Flash, Michelle, Ned and Aiden were sprawled across the roof off the van, slowly pushing themselves up. By some miracle, no one seemed severely injured, but Peter knew they would have to do a full check up on everyone when they were safe.

The smell of gas was thickening and the flames were starting to attach themselves to the side of the van and Peter knew they didn’t have much time till there was a second explosion. He held his hand out to Michelle, who took it and he hauled her out fast, carrying over the glass surrounding them. He then gestured for Ned and Flash, looping an arm under each of their shoulders. Aiden had already limped out by the time he returned, so Peter helped him hobble across to the other side of the road.

“We must have triggered some bomb.” Peter said, looking out at the wreck of their van.

“Who the fuck leaves a bomb lying around?” Flash said, frustrated, as he cradled a swollen hand.

But Flash was right. Why was a bomb just sitting in the middle of the road? Was it deliberate?

Peter didn’t have time to ponder it further as an explosion knocked them all backwards. The fire must have reached the gas as the van went up in a glorious blaze of fire and smoke.

Something across the smoky highway caught Peter’s eye. Movement.

He squinted to look further and could just about make out the blurry silhouettes of a group of people stalking over to them. Panic flooded through Peter’s veins and he stood in front of the others, muttering at them to not move or engage.

Peter trudged towards the gang of people that had now gotten closer, assuming that these were probably the people that set the bomb, and that they probably wanted something from them, and that they probably weren’t afraid to kill them to get it.

They were so close to making it. But, of course, with Peter Parker around, nothing was that easy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OoooooooOooOooo
> 
> comments and kudos appreciated! :)))


	9. Chapter 9

_Another gang?_

Peter was getting tired of all these people trying to kill him. But as they got closer, Peter took in the bulging muscles and dark clothing, and realised that these were the same people from back at the store – the same group that Flash had arrived with and the same group from which they had killed their leader.

“Shit. It’s Jared’s gang.” Flash whispered.

They stopped a few metres in front of them and Peter had to hold back a flinch at seeing the same metal wrench that broke his ribs. They took a threatening stance, this time more prepared to put up a fight.

“Looks like it’s our lucky day!” A woman bellowed, a thick British accent coating her words. She had short hair and chains hanging from her clothes, her arms crossed.

“I don’t want to hurt you… Just let us pass and we will be on our way.” Peter tried to reason.

The lady laughed obnoxiously. “I don’t think so. We were just waiting until some unlucky fucker came stumbling into our fun, little trap – but it looks like we caught something _much_ better.”

Peter took a step towards her, his heart thumping wildly. “We kicked your ass back at the store. What makes you think you can beat us now?”

The woman laughed again, also taking a step forwards, challenging him. “We weren’t ready then. Besides, now that you killed our sick bastard of a leader, I’m in charge. And I don’t like to lose.”

Peter raised his fists and took a defensive stance, beyond relived that he had his web shooters to help him this time. This should be a piece of cake.

“Ah, ah, ah.” She wiggled her finger at him, biting her lip. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. Boys?” She gestured to the two men behind her, who immediately pulled out an assault rifle and a shotgun from beneath their jackets.

Peter tensed and slowly lowered his fists, putting his hands up in surrender. 

“We had a little upgrade since we last saw you.” She smiled innocently. “Now, here is what is going to happen. Either you are going to tell us how you became enhanced, or you are going to come with us.”

“You must be more stupid than I thought, Lady, if you think – “

She cut him off. “You can call me Miss Layton. And I’m afraid I wasn’t asking. As you seem so reluctant to tell us how you got your enhancements–“ She was right. There was no way Peter would reveal the spider bite. He couldn’t risk people like them having so much power. “ – you will have to come with us. You will act as a soldier, if you will – you know, fighting off Growlers for us, making sure no one gets in our way – “

“I get the picture, Miss _Layton_ ” Peter spat her name, his words coated with venom. His fists clenched but they remained firmly at his sides - he had to play this right. “You can’t make me cooperate.”

“Oh? We can’t?” Miss Layton looked to the man holding the assault rifle on his right. “Restrain the girl. The younger one.”

The man advanced towards Imani, his hand reaching out to her collar. Peter side stepped in front of her, stopping him from touching her. 

“Don’t touch her. I’ll go with you.” Peter relented. Michelle made a noise of disagreement behind him, but Ned grabbed her arm, praying that Peter had a plan. 

Hesitantly, Peter walked over to Miss Layton, eying the men that were still holding their guns up. Once he was close enough, the woman reached forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. Peter began to move away from the unwanted touch but froze when the men lifted their guns at him.

“You’re a pretty boy, you know that?” Miss Layton hummed. Peter didn’t like the way her eyes were roaming his body, making him feel exposed and uncomfortable. “Yes. I think we are going to have a lot of fun, me and you.”

Miss Layton slowly traced her hands down his chest and Peter felt sick at what she was implying. Her hand was suddenly a little to low for his liking but luckily Peter realised that each of the men had aligned themselves in the perfect position for him to act.

Deciding enough was enough, Peter flicked each of his wrists out to the side and fired two webs in one swift movement. They each attached to the guns the men were holding and he yanked hard, forcing them to fly out of the hands and clatter onto the concrete. The women gasped and tried to secure him, but with the weapons gone this fight would be too easy.

He threw punch after kick at the each thug in their little gang, satisfied when each of them had either fallen unconscious or scrambled away.

Exhausted, Peter turned around to the others. “That went well.”

They all seemed too shocked to move. But finally, Ned’s gaze wandered up to him. “Dude, that was totally badass.”

Peter grinned and took a bow, despite the ache that seemed to have settled over his all body. Looking closer, they all looked pretty rough from the explosion.

“Why can’t we catch a break?” Flash moaned, dragging a hand through his mattered hair.

“We need to find somewhere to stay. It’s too dangerous to stay out here at night.” Michelle said, looking up at the sky. The sun was starting to set, casting an orange glow over the highway.

“What about Colorado?” Ned tried to wipe of the ash that had collected on his clothes.

“Michelle’s right. We can figure that out tomorrow.” Aiden reasoned.

Peter reached for his mask – _shit._

“What?” 

“My mask – it was in the van when it exploded. I can’t access Karen or the map she gave me.” Peter kicked the crumpled heap of an abandoned car to the left of him, the metal denting on impact.

“Do you know roughly where we are going?” Aiden thought about wandering the streets on foot, aimlessly, and how that would most likely get them killed.

“I have a vague idea. I’d say we were about a few hours away.”

“We were so close!” Flash huffed.

“If we follow the highway, hopefully we should come across a gas station or something.”

They all agreed to start walking, hoping to cover as much distance as possible before it got too dark to see. Each car they passed they checked to see if it was still functional, but everyone they came across was either completely destroyed or had no fuel.

“I don’t wanna’ keep walking! I’m tired!” Imani whined, sounding close to tears. No one blamed her. No one made fun of her.

Peter hoisted her up onto his shoulders, her small weight feeling like a backpack with his strength. She quickly fell asleep, her head resting on his as they trudged across the road. They were all bruised, hungry, and had no weapons due to the van exploding with all their stuff inside.

Peter nearly cried from relief when he spotted a large building of some kind on the side of the road. With a newfound determination, the group jogged up to it, and on closer inspection found that it was an empty bowling alley. 

With no torch to light the way, Peter took the lead as they filed into the desolate halls. It reminded him of when they were still at the school, creeping through the corridors. No Growlers immediately raced at them, so Peter took that as a good sign and edged further into the building.

They came out into a large space, and although it was hard to tell, Peter thought it was the bowling alley. Peter shuffled along the floor towards the front desk and started to pull open draws. Like he had back at school, he found a stash of flashlights and handed one to each of them.

Happy that they weren’t near any growlers, they split up, trying to find food or any supplies that could help them. Peter eyed the vending machine greedily and wasted no time in punching through the glass. The shards littered his fists with tiny scratches, but he didn’t care as his stomach growled loudly.

“I feel like there could have been a better way to do that.”

Peter spun round to see Michelle standing behind him, staring at his now bloody hand with an unimpressed expression.

“Oh, leave me alone.” Peter said, smiling. 

“You okay?” She looked at him with a studying expression, like she was trying to look into his brain and examine the broken pieces.

“Are _you_ okay?” Peter shot back. Two could play at that game.

She gave him an unamused look. “I asked you first.”

“And I asked you second.” Peter turned to face her fully, noticing the frizzy locks of unwashed hair falling over her face, and the small bit of blood that tricked down her cheek from the explosion.

Michelle didn’t speak for a while, crossing her arms and staring at him. “Fine.” She eventually said. “Let’s say, hypothetically, that I wasn’t okay.” She cast her eyes to the ground. “What would you do about it, hypothetically?”

Peter sucked in a long breath through his nose. “Well if you weren’t okay – _hypothetically_ , that is – I’d probably do something along the lines of this.” Peter reached forward and gently took hold of the hand that was still crossed at her front. He gripped her wrist and pulled her forward till she was up against his chest, and slowly wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight.

At first Michelle seem startled by the gesture, her body tense and rigid, but when she realised maybe Peter needed this as much as she did, she relaxed into the embrace, lifting her arms around his back. 

She let her head drop against his shoulder, her face buried in the crook of his neck so he could feel her breathe against his skin. Her breathe hitched slightly, and accompanied by the wetness on his neck, Peter realised she was crying. He rubbed soothing circles on her back and hugged her tighter, not even entertaining the thought of letting her go.

“We’re going to be okay.” He whispered, just loud enough so she could here. “We’re going to be completely fine.” _Liar_. 

They stood there, intertwined, for what felt like an eternity but at the same time wasn’t nearly enough. Eventually, Michelle pulled back, rubbing at her eyes with the sleeve of her hoodie so Peter couldn’t see the tears.

“I guess, if I wasn’t okay, _hypothetically_ , that would have made me feel better.” She sniffed, looking away.

Peter chuckled. “I’ll keep that mind.” He reached through the broken window of the vending machine and pulled out as many handfuls of snacks that he could carry. Michelle wordlessly took a load from his grip so he could gather more and started to walk back to where the others had set up camp.

It wasn’t as nearly as luxurious as it had been at the store. There were no beds, couches or blankets to sleep on, just the hard benches that were lined by the bowling alleys. Peter was thankful they had at least found a few flashlights; it was hard enough for him to see even with his enhanced vision.

There was no friendly banter or the retelling of over-exaggerated stories when he neared the group, everyone to exhausted and disappointed to even act happy. They had been so close to making it to safety and being back at square on felt like a punch to the gut. They hadn’t been able to find a vehicle; all the supplies had blown up; and Peter wasn’t even one hundred percent sure where they were going with his mask gone. 

They ate in silence, muttering quick good nights as they tried to get comfortable on the wooden benches. Peter couldn’t find it in him to care, the hurt and exhaustion seeping into his bones before he even closed his eyes.

***

_There was blood. Too much blood._

_It ran in waterfalls down his body and onto the street below, creating a whirlpool of dark red. It was sticky and thick like syrup, the substance choking him as it clogged up his throat. He tried to gag, scream, anything to loosen the growing panic that threatened to consume him._

_He looked into the fading eyes of Uncle Ben, seeing the gunshot wound from where the blood was flowing from, drowning him. Peter tried to say something, as if he begged hard enough it would magically close up the wound that was slowly killing him, but the words died in his throat._

_Peter blinked and Uncle Ben was gone, his dead body replaced with May’s. The blood that coated him was still suffocating him, but this time a new form of raw pain was screaming inside him. May looked up at him and even though she didn’t say anything, couldn’t because of the rotten blood that was falling from her lips, Peter knew what she wanted to say._

_“Why didn’t you save me?”_

_“How could you let this happen?”_

_“You let me die. You let us all die.”_

_Suddenly there were more bodies, surrounding him from where he knelt in the pool of red. Their eyes were lifeless and unseeing, like they had been dead for years. Their bodies were mangled and torn, making them almost unrecognisable. But there was no mistaking who they were._

_His parents. Uncle Ben. Aunt May. Mr Stark. Ned. MJ. Flash. Aiden. Imani._

Peter gasped awake. Within seconds the nightmare was playing on a loop in his head. 

He glanced around the dark space, noticing that he hadn’t woken anybody. _Phew_. It was bad enough they had seen him in the midst of his last dream – he didn’t want to have to explain this one, or admit that these fitful sleeps were a common occurrence for him. 

Quietly, he looked at the Imani’s hand that was draped off the bench, squinting to see the watch o her wrist. 

_Shit_. It was only just past midnight, so he had only gotten a few hours of sleep. Considering he hadn’t really slept in the van either, his hours awake were starting to add up. Peter also knew that there was no way he was going to sleep anymore tonight.

Peter stretched out the aches across his body. He was glad he hadn’t gotten any major injuries from the explosion, but the bruises and scrapes still throbbed, and the lack of sleep and food was slowing his healing factor significantly. Peter knew he should be more concerned that his bumps and scratches which should have completely cleared up had barely faded, but his health didn’t seem like a big issue. Besides, he was Spiderman; he could handle it.

He decided to keep watch for the rest of the night. Sure, the chances of a Growler appearing were low, but it was better to be safe than sorry. He was lost in his thoughts for a few hours, until his attention snapped to some shuffling across from him.

Flash yawned loudly, slowly sitting up with a groan. Morning light filtered through the numerous windows, but it was still fairly dark so he assumed the sun was just starting to rise. He noticed Peter sitting across from him, wide awake.

“Parker.” He said through tired eyes.

“Thompson.” Peter responded; his voice croaky.

Flash wrinkled his nose at being called by his surname. “How long have you been awake?”

“Not long.” Peter lied. 

Flash smirked and lent against the back of the wooden bench. “You’re a shit liar, Penis.”

Peter just shrugged, going back to fiddling with the loose strings from his hoodie. Flash didn’t push him like he was sure the others would have, and for that he was grateful.

“You know,” Flash began, his voice low. “I used to worship Spiderman – thought he was invincible. And then I found out it was you all along.”

Peter looked down at his scruffy shoes. “Sorry to disappoint.” That was another reason Peter was always so scared of his identity being revealed. When he was Spiderman, for once he wasn’t the scared little boy that could barely keep it together. He was strong, and brave, and good. Nothing like Peter Parker. 

Flash rolled his eyes. “No, dude, that’s not what I meant. I’d been bullying someone who I considered to be a hero.”

Peter was starting to get frustrated. “What are you saying, man? If you are just trying to call me weak or something, then lay off, okay? I already know.”

“Parker, will you listen to me?”

Peter glanced back up at him, confused.

“I guess…” Flash struggles to find the words. “I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve what I put you through.”

Peter shuffled uncomfortably, chuckling. “Did you hit your head when the van flipped?”

“Penis, I’m trying to be nice – actually, you know what? I take it back.” Flash crossed his arms and turned away.

“Okay! No – I’m sorry.” Peter laughed. “Thank you for the apology, Flash.”

“Too late. I already took it back. You can't accept an apology that no longer exists!” Flash pretended to sulk but couldn’t stop the small smile that turned up his lips. “Besides, you and Ned literally talked about Legos out in the open – like, you were practically asking to be bullied.”

“What have you got against Legos, man?”

“Nothing, when five-year olds are playing with them!” Flash had given up pretending to be mad, swinging his legs off the bench instead so he could see Peter more clearly.

“Well you haven’t seen the Legos me and Ned play with! The death star has, like, five thousand pieces!” 

“Do you hear yourself right now?” Flash exclaimed, laughing as well.

“How about this? When this whole,” Peter gestured around him with his hands “- shit fest is over, you can come and build some Legos with Ned and I. Trust me, you will see how truly cool they actually are.”

Flash rolled his eyes dramatically. “ _Fine_. But not because I think it will be fun – just so I can laugh at what fucking nerds’ you guys are.”

Peter grinned, the smile reaching his eyes. “It’s a deal.”

Michelle stirred awake and Flash turned back around. He may be cool with Parker, but he still had a reputation to keep.

It was still early morning by the time everyone had woken up one by one and they were all preparing themselves for the long walk ahead of them, each silently praying they found a working vehicle on the way. With no bags left, they stuffed any supplies into their pockets, taking as much with them as they could carry.

“I don’t want to walk!” Imani whined, her voice high pitch and on the verge of breaking. Peter couldn’t blame her.

Aiden crouched down and put what he hoped was a comforting arm on her shoulder. “I know. Neither do I but we don’t have a choice.

Suddenly she perked up, bouncing on the spot. “Can we play hide and seek before we leave? Please!”

“Uh…” Aiden looked around, silently asking for help on how to handle this without it resulting in tears.

“I mean, we did wake up earlier than we thought. No harm in having a couple of rounds.” Michelle shrugged, surprising everyone.

Aiden stood up to face Michelle, his eyebrows raised. “MJ we can’t just hang around here! The sooner we get to Colorado the better.”

“Aiden, _please_!” Imani whined from behind him, tugging at his jacket.

“I wouldn’t mind.” Ned said. “It may be the end of the world but I think we deserve to have some fun.”

Aiden blew out a long breathe and closed his eyes. “One…Two…Three…Four – “

Imani squealed in excitement.

Flash took off in a sprint within seconds, disappearing into a corridor, apparently very keen on winning. Ned and Michelle laughed at Flash’s eagerness, before jogging off together in a different direction to find somewhere to hide.

“Wait, this is actually happening?” Peter was a little shook. He was about to insist they leave but he saw how Imani’s eyes had lit up with joy and he gave in, letting her drag him away as she took his hand.

The two ran down a hallway together, past a row of locked doors. There feet slapped against the marble floor as Imani led the way, her hand tightly gripping Peter’s. 

“Where should we hide?” She whisper-yelled, even though Peter doubted anyone would be able to hear them this far away. 

Peter came to a stop where the hallway branched off into three different paths. With his enhanced hearing he could make out the sound of nearing footsteps, knowing it was Aiden.

“He is coming!” Peter looked around frantically, tying to find a hiding spot before Aiden turned the corner. He looked up at the high ceiling and grabbed Imani by the waist, her squealing in both delight and surprise

Using his sticky fingers, he pulled them up the wall and onto the ceiling, holding Imani tightly so she wouldn't fall.

She giggled as she saw Aiden approaching, feeling completely safe with Peter.

“Shhh!” Peter shushed her even though he was trying to hold in laughs as well. He clamped a hand over her mouth as she couldn’t contain her laugher and tried to hold still.

He looked down as Aiden jogged directly below them, peering through the windows on the doors. He took a left and kept going, Peter waiting till he was far away before dropping back to the floor and releasing Imani.

“That was close!” Peter laughed, the burst of adrenaline leaving him on a high.

Imani bounced excitedly. “That was so cool! Do you think that counts as cheating?”

Peter thought about it, stroking his chin. “I don’t think it says anywhere in the rues that you can’t use spider-related powers. And is it really cheating if no one finds out?” He gave her a mischievous grin.

“Pinkie swear you won’t tell anyone we cheated?” She looked at him as if this was the most pressing issue in the world and held out her hand, pinkie extended.

Peter matched her serious tone. “Anything for you, Princess.” He linked fingers with her and gave it a firm shake. “Now, where should we hide – “

The words died in his throat instantly as he felt his hairs stand on end and the tingle at the base of his neck. Peter pulled Imani a little closer to him and whipped his head around, confused as to where the danger could be coming from.

Imani must have sensed something wasn’t right as she said nothing while Peter surveyed the situation. 

Along with the thudding of his heart, the itch increased, something telling him he needed to look behind him.

He heard the shriek before he saw it, slowly turning his head round as he begged it not to be true.

Standing at the opposite end of the hall was a Growler, it’s gory clothes baggy around it’s mangled, skeleton frame. Peter looked it dead in it’s blazing eyes, hearing the erratic breathing from Imani as her fingernails dug into his hand.

The Growler took off towards them, tearing cross the corridor with a terrifying scream, pure rage fuelling its dizzying speed.

It’s funny. Peter always got annoyed at the main characters in movies when they saw the threat coming towards them but waited till the last second to run. But now – now he understood. The fear that laced through every fibre of his being seized his muscles and kept him rooted to the floor. He wanted to run but his legs weren’t cooperating, and he could barely breathe and their was too much noise and it was getting too close and – “

“Peter!” 

The terrified scream of Imani snatched him back to reality like the snap of a bear trap, his body moving before he could process anything. He swung Imani around his waist, pushing his legs to go faster as the Growler gained of them. Peter could barely believe it used to be human, it was so fast.

He rounded a corner, skidding slightly, and pushing off the opposite wall to keep his momentum going. He didn’t know where he was going, just hoped that if he ran far enough it would give up. Peter couldn’t risk trying to fight it off; all their weapons had been destroyed in the explosion and if Peter failed there would be no one to protect Imani. 

“Guys?” Peter yelled as he sprinted, even though it was pointless. If the others were still in the building, they would have heard the animalistic shrieks of the Growler.

Peter’s heart dropped to his stomach as he quickly peered his head round and saw there were now three Growlers chasing after them. He burst through different doors, his sense of direction completely lost as his senses screamed _get away, get away!_

He flew his arm back, aiming a web at the Growler closest. His web shooters made a clicking noise but spewed no webbing and Peter cursed as he realised his cartridges must be empty. He cursed again when he realised he had no spares on him, remembering he had put them in his backpack for the long car ride.

They swerved another corner and Peter rammed into a set of double doors, the metal flying open despite being locked.

Peter halted to a stop as he nearly crashed into a wall and moved to change direction but realised with a suffocating feeling of panic that they had reached a dead end. Peter had no time to think of a new plan before the three Growlers rounded the same corner and came hurtling through the double doors. 

Peter took a defensive position, cracked his knuckles, and prepared for a fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry in advance for the next chapter... it's not going to be pretty...
> 
> Anyway, Happy Christmas, my dudes!!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is! I'm so sorry. You guys can yell at me in the comments!
> 
> This is a heavy one - maybe check the tags to be safe to check there are no potential triggers.
> 
> Extra warning for this one: pretty violent and graphic, also a bit of vomiting but not super graphic.
> 
> Hope everyone had a good Christmas (or just a good day in general if you don't celebrate)! :))

The Growler at the front lunged forwards as Peter pushed Imani into the corner behind him. He dodged to the side before it could rip into his side and used the momentum to smash it’s head into the wall. 

He briefly considered whether he could stick him and Imani to the ceiling and move past them from above, but the ceilings were too low, and he knew they would never make it.

The other two Growlers attacked him from both sides overwhelming Peter, hitting him with incredible force and making Peter stumble. Luckily, he managed to swerve out of the way before one of them could sink their teeth into his flesh and swung a kick into their side, launching them against the white walls. While they were dazed, Peter spun around to Imani who was hunched in the corner, crying, and heaved her up onto his waist again, speeding past the Growlers. 

His legs carried him across more of the same white halls, the Growlers hot on their heels. He noticed they had somehow circled around, bursting through the doors that lead to the bowling alley to see that the others were nowhere to be seen.

He dropped Imani to the floor a little too harshly in his panic. “Run!” He yelled, pointing to the exit that lead to the outside. She wasted no time in scrambling away.

Peter frantically looked around for something he could use as a weapon. His hands found a bowling ball and he picked it up, the heavy weight feeling like a tennis ball with his strength. He hurled it at a Growler seconds before it was able to claw onto him. It sunk to the ground, unmoving.

“One down. Two to go.” He breathed. A terrified yelp had his heart racing as he saw Imani sprinting back towards him. Another growler had blocked the exit and was now also advancing on them.

Peter armed himself with another two bowling balls, sending them flying towards the Growlers. Imani did the same, struggling to throw the ball, but Peter was proud of her none the less.

His attention was gone a second too long, as suddenly he was being thrown back, skidding across the slippery floor of the bowling alley. A Growler had picked up the heavy ball and thrown it back at Peter, the weight colliding with his stomach and knocking the air out of him. 

Slamming into the opposite wall front first, a burning pain spread across his middle. He fought for breath as he jumped back up, dismissing the growing patch of red on his hoodie. He was vaguely aware of seeing a bloodied pole protruding from the wall he had smashed into but ignored it in favour of saving Imani. He staggered as he ran towards her, the agonising pain nearly too much. As he ran up the Growlers body like a wall, his foot sent a powerful uppercut into its chin, snapping its neck and leaving it falling to the floor.

The last Growler appeared out of nowhere, snatching Imani up into the air before he could react. She screamed in terror, her legs thrashing.

“No!” Peter shouted, grabbing another bowling ball and smashing it into the Growlers face repeatedly, until it went limp and dropped a crying Imani.

Peter breathed a sigh of relief, his adrenaline crashing and legs nearly folding in on himself.

“Holy cow – that was close!” Peter placed a shaky hand over the bleeding wound just above his hip on the right. “High-five!” He said, trying to keep his voice light and chipper, as to not worry Imani.

Imani didn’t respond right away, her eyes vacant and unseeing. Peter’s eyebrows creased in concern as he took a step towards her.

“Hey, Princess, you okay – “

Suddenly, her whole body collapsed, Peter catching her before she could nose-dive into the floor. A sickening dread washed over him as he felt a familiar wetness on his fingers. He laid her across the floor, and it was only then that he noticed the teeth marks that had ripped into her shoulder and torn away the fabric of her clothes.

“No, no, no.” Peter whispered, his voice cracking. His trembling hands hovered over the bite mark as he tried not to look at the way the vibrant red stood out against her dark skin. “Hey, look at me.” Peter tried not to give away how he was trying to hold back tears.

Slowly, her eyes wandered up to his, blinking slowly as tears cascaded down her cheeks.

Peter managed a weak smile. “That’s it. You’re – you’re okay. You’re fine.” His hands pressed against the gaping wound, blood immediately gushing out between his fingers.

“Peter?” It was barely a whisper, barely a croak, but Peter heard her, manoeuvring her head so it lay rested on his lap, instead of the cold floor. “Did we get ‘em?”

A wet chuckle burst from Peter’s lips, on the verge of being hysterical. “Yeah, we got them. You did real good, Princess.”

Her breathes were coming out in pained wheezes and Peter wished he could feel it in her place. He knew it was too late, knew that she was dying in his arms, but that didn’t stop him muttering words of reassurance and applying more pressure to her shoulder, his eyes locked with his. He could tell she was fighting to stay awake with everything she had – but he also knew that she was in too much pain.

“You can let go. It’s okay, princess, I’m right here.” He whispered, rocking her gently back and forth. “Just drift off. I’ll stay with you.”

“Promise you won’ let go?” Her words were slurring together.

Peter nodded, the tears freely flowing down his face. “I promise. I’ll never let go.”

A wave of calm washed over her features and her body relaxed into his. Her eyes fluttered shut and she looked at peace as slowly, she drifted off. 

Peter bowed his head and clutched her lifeless body tighter, willing her to come back to him. How could he let this happen?

Without warning, a gasp tore from her throat and he looked down at her, but her kind, innocent eyes had been replaced with a raging fury. She shrieked as she struggled in his hold, her punch making Peter roll across the floor from the force

Imani was no longer Imani. She was one of them – a Growler.

Her small arms flew at him wildly in every direction and she was on him in seconds, pummelling into his chest. Peter wrestled against her, his heart beating out of his chest.

“Imani!” He yelled, his voice cracking. Part of him knew it was too late, she was just a shell, but the other part of him didn’t want to give up.

She lay on top of him, Peter’s hands the only thing from keeping her teeth from tearing into his body. She struggled against his grip, trying to get closer to him.

“Imani, please!” Peter tried again even though it was useless. Child or not, Growlers were strong, and he couldn’t keep this up for much longer. His mind raced for something to do but he didn’t have enough time and her teeth were getting closer to him and her shrieks were growing louder, more animalistic, and he was losing his strength and she was going to kill him and – 

_Crack._

Peter hadn’t even realised he had snapped her neck to the side until she had gone limp, her small body falling over his. It was an automatic response to the danger above him, but that didn’t stop him from remembering the way he felt her bones break beneath his hands as the fight left her at once. 

Feeling overwhelmed, Peter gasped as he pushed away the corpse that was dead weight on his chest. His whole body convulsed as he gagged, vomit splashing onto the floor beside her body. An involuntary scream was begging to be released as he stumbled away from her. Roughly, he pushed a clenched fist to his mouth and screamed through gritted teeth.

_Crack_. The sickening sound played over in his head as he stared at her lifeless body, her blood still pooling across the white tiles. A selfish part of Peter was glad she was on her front, her face turned away from him because he knew he wouldn’t be able to handle seeing her face.

He hadn’t stopped shaking, the red coating his hands, his arms, his clothes. _It was just like Uncle Ben._

The guilt was suffocating. _Crack_. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. Peter fell to his knees with a loud thud but he couldn’t feel it over the unbearable pounding in his heart, like someone was taking a sledge hammer and beating it against his ribcage, relentlessly and brutally, as if to say _‘What have you done?’_

He saw her light blue watch peeking out from underneath her bloodied hoody, and without thinking he found himself unfastening it from her cold wrist, clutching it tightly to his chest as he sobbed.

_Crack._

Peter didn’t remember stumbling away, his tears mixing with the blood that was gathering everywhere. He didn’t register pushing open the doors and leaving her body, her poor lifeless body, in the abandoned building. 

Imani was gone. Dead. _Crack. Crack. Crack._

The bright sunlight assaulted his eyes as he stood, numb, outside on the highway once again. Something in the back of Peter’s mind told him he needed to find the others, make sure they were okay.

But he couldn’t seem to move, the phantom feeling of her neck snapping in his grip taunting him. He wanted to rip his hands off, shred them to pieces, rid the world of the part of him that had forced the life out of an innocent, little girl in one deadly motion. He wanted to tear his eyes out because the terrified look on her face was clouding his vision so it was all he could see, all he could feel. He wanted to stab his ears repeatedly till they were a useless mess of flesh and cartilage, anything to stifle the _crack_ that vibrated in his mind like a mantra. But he couldn't seem to move.

As his mind cleared, the pressure on his side increased, stealing his breath away. His could feel the warm wetness across his whole side as it trickled down his right pant leg. Looking at his still-shaking hands, Peter couldn’t tell what blood was his and what was hers, the thought making him gag again. 

_Crack_. The snap of her neck played over and over in his head like a broken record – the way her struggling body suddenly became too still, the way his hands moved like a well-oiled machine, jolting her head to the side brutally.

She was only eight.

Movement across the highway caught his eye and he looked up, his muscles moving automatically. A mixture of relief and dread flooded through him as he saw the others. Michelle, Ned, Flash and Aiden were staring at him from across the road, their blurry figures moving towards him.

Relief, because that meant they were all alive. Dread, because he had to tell them what he did. _Oh god_. Peter pushed down a wave of nausea at realising he had to face Aiden. He had to face her _brother._

***

Michelle was panicking. 

She was always so calm and collected, but now, every inch of her indifferent façade had been stripped away as she stared at the building of the abandoned bowling alley.

Aiden had just found them, tucked away in a crappy hiding spot behind a trashcan that Ned had insisted was _‘the perfect spot’_ for hide and seek. She was in the middle of lightly slapping the back of Ned’s head telling him, “I told you that was a shit idea,” when they heard the unmistakable shriek of a Growler.

Together they had sprinted through the twisting corridors, bumping into a flustered Flash on the way, and came across the exit and bounded across the other side of the road. They figured they should wait here, where it was safe, as Peter would protect Imani and get them out of there.

But it had been too long. Flash and Ned sat along the side behind the road barriers, sharing sips from a water bottle, while Aiden stood tensely, his gaze never leaving the exit.

Michelle, however, was pacing. She didn’t understand how they could be so still when it had been so _long._

“Should we go looking for them?” She said suddenly, looking at Aiden whose sight didn’t waver.

“We can’t.” His voice was clipped. “Peter will get them out.”

He had a lot of faith in someone he didn’t know very well. But Michelle new he was right – they weren’t enhanced, and they had nothing to protect themselves. Going back inside would be like signing for their death. Besides, if anyone could get them out, it would be Peter.

Her thoughts were halted to a stop when she saw the double doors swing open, Peter stumbling out.

But it was immediately obvious that something was very, _very_ wrong.

Scanning his body, Michelle's breath hitched when she saw the sheer volume of blood that coated Peter. It covered his hands and arms so much you couldn’t see his pale skin, the speckles of red littering his face. She also noticed the growing patch of wet blood that covered his hoodie, concentrated just above his hip and spreading down to the bottom of his right pant leg.

But somehow, what she noticed second was even worse than the blood. Because Peter had come out, but Imani _hadn’t_.

No words were spoken as the group jogged towards Peter who stood, his feet rooted to the ground. As they got closer, Michelle could see the haunted look that marked his face and the way his body was shaking so badly she was surprised he was still standing.

“Where is she?” Aiden was the first to reach Peter, giving him a harsh shove that sent Peter tumbling to the ground. 

Peter opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out, tears clouding his vision. 

“Where is she?” This time Aiden screamed at him, his body heaving with heavy breathing as he stood over Peter, who had made no attempt to get up.

When Peter still didn’t respond, Aiden grabbed him by the collar of his bloodied hoodie and lifted his body a little off the ground, threateningly. “Answer me!” He screamed, tears leaking out of his eyes because he already knew the answer.

“I – I couldn’t, I tried – she’s gone.” Peter finally croaked; his voice weak.

The back of Peter’s neck tingled but he ignored it as a fist pummelled across his face, snapping his head to the side. _Crack_ , just like Imani’s. Peter spat out the blood that pooled in his mouth but didn’t resist when Aiden pulled his fist back to hit him again, harder than before.

“Aiden, stop!” Michelle screamed. She moved to pull Aiden away, but he shoved her back and she fell to the concrete.

“You said you would protect her!” Aiden wailed, sending a brutal kick into Peter’s side, he knew he had to stop, knew that it wasn’t Peter’s fault but once he started, he couldn’t stop.

Punch after kick, Peter held his hands over his head and lay on the floor, taking the beating that he knew he deserved. Every assault had his whole-body swimming in pain, and he could no longer stop the grunts and cries that escaped his lips.

Aiden didn’t know what he was doing. He could barely feel the impact of his hands against Peter’s body, everything around him turning too loud and too quiet at the same time. _She’s gone, she’s gone, she’s gone, she’s gone_. Distantly, he could feel the hands pulling at his back, trying to tear him away, could hear the shouts and pleas for him to stop. 

A sob was ripped out of him as suddenly he came back to himself. He saw Peter lying crumpled on the ground, in a tight ball and he couldn’t believe what he had done, looking at his bruised and bloodied knuckles. Aiden staggered away, the weight of his actions and Peter’s state feeling too much to bear.

Michelle was at Peter’s side in an instant, gently trying to pry Peter’s hands away that were tightly clasping over his ears. His face was bruised and bloodied, like she knew the rest of him would be, but he would live.

“I killed her.” Peter wheezed between fits of painful coughing.

Ned was trying to carefully lift him into a sitting position. “It’s not your fault, Peter.”

Peter shook his head vigorously, crying openly. “You don’t understand – I killed her! I should’ve – it was my fault, I –“ 

His words morphed into a low groan, the pain across his body feeling like he was splitting apart.

Michelle bunched up his blood-soaked hoodie above his hip, seeing the stab wound that was still leaking blood. “Shit, Peter.” She cursed. Her finger found the bottom of her sweatshirt and she ripped a large piece off in one fluid motion, wrapping it around the wound tightly and tying it off.

Peter’s agonising yell was muffled against his shoulder, his eyes scrunched together so tightly he could see stars.

Flash must have been with Aiden, because suddenly he was jogging over to where Peter laid against Ned and Michelle who were assessing his injuries, while he groaned and tried not to empty the contents of his stomach – again.

“Guys, we’ve got to get moving. There could be more Growlers in there.” Flash said, barely keeping it together. But then he took in the battered state Peter was in. “ _Fuck_. Can he walk?”

Michelle was already shaking her head when Peter spoke up. “I’m fine. I can walk. Flash is right – we need to keep moving.” His voice was still hoarse and strained but now he wasn’t sobbing it felt stronger.

Michelle didn’t look convinced, but Peter was pushing himself to his feet, gripping onto Ned for support with a barely supressed cry. He was heavily favouring his left leg, one arm secured across his side like he was trying to stop his organs from spilling out, and the other draped over Ned’s shoulder. Though it made his vision white out and his head swim, he limped forward at a surprisingly fast pace. In a way he liked the pain; it was a distraction from the crushing grief that threatened to bury him.

Aiden walked on ahead, his head hung low and fists clenched at his side. Peter couldn’t believe he had kept it together that long. If anything had happened to May – 

_No_. That was not a rabbit hole he was willing to fall into.

They must have been walking for a few hours as now the sun was high in the sky. Still no vehicle. Still no safety zone.

Their pace had slowed significantly. Peter’s laboured breathing was becoming more concerning and Flash had started to walk directly beside him, ready to catch him if he collapsed. No one would admit it, but the last couple of days had taken a toll on their bodies.

Flash’s wrist was still swollen and throbbing from the explosion; ned could barely concentrate over the banging in his head from where his head crashed against the side of the flipping van, leaving a trail of blood dripping down the side of his head; Michelle was certain she must have sprained several muscles across her upper body as she could barely lift her arms above her waist without it sending shooting pains everywhere; Aiden wasn’t particularly injured, maybe a little sleep deprived and dehydrated, but the real issue was the hollow feeling that had taken root in his chest. 

He could think of nothing other than how scared she must have been, how he was supposed to protect her, how she was never coming back.

Michelle winced at the sweat that was glistening against Peter’s forehead, dampening his brown curls. He was shivering violently despite they way his skin was burning up and Michelle knew he was standing on his last legs.

“We need to take a break.” She called out, leaving no room for argument.

Aiden looked around at her, deliberately avoiding Peter. “We can’t stop now. It’s too dangerous.”

“Michelle’s right. Peter doesn’t look so good.” Ned studied Peter’s face.

“I’m fine to keep moving.” Peter croaked, but nobody took notice of him.

Aiden blew out a frustrated breath. “This isn’t up for discussion. Let’s go.”

“You’re not in charge, here!” Michelle took a step towards Aiden, who had half way turned around to keep walking.

“Oh, and you are?” He shot back, fully facing her again.

Michelle laughed humourlessly, about to throw out another comeback when flash stepped in front of them.

“Shut it, will you?” He snapped. “We will take a ten-minute breather and then get moving again. Happy?”

No one replied, so he took that as a yes.

They were only a few minutes into their much-needed break when the rustling of bushes and snapping of twigs had their attention. They all looked off into the sea of trees that lay on the side of the highway, slowly getting ready to run.

An older man with light grey, slightly dishevelled hair and a thick winter jacket came edging out behind a tree, a shotgun aimed at the group.

“Stay back!” the man yelled, his finger hovering over the trigger.

“Woah, woah! What the hell?” Ned yelped, his hands held above his head.

“Are you infected? Are you here to kill me?” The man was clearly unstable, the gun shaking in his hands. 

“Do we look infected?” Flash said, oblivious to the man’s panicking.

Aiden took a small step forward but froze when the man held the gun tighter. “I said stay back!” He yelled.

Michelle could tell the man was just frightened, possibly traumatised. This didn’t have to end ugly.

She raised her hands to show she wasn’t a threat. “Hey. We aren’t going to hurt you.” Her voice was gentle. “We can figure this out.” She took a slow step towards him. “Why don’t you put down the – “

Multiple things happened at once.

Michelle took a step too far, the man panicking and firing his gun, the loud bang making everyone gasp and jolt. Her eyes were squeezed shut, but when she felt no bullet hit her, she hesitantly peeled them open.

Peter was standing in front of her, his hands on her shoulders. His eyes were staring into Michelle’s, lips slightly apart as his breath hitched. 

Swaying on his feet, Michelle gripped onto him, too shocked to process anything. But somehow Peter didn’t collapse, his slowly turned to face the man again, giving Michelle a clear view of the large bullet hole in the back of his shoulder. 

He stood his ground as he protected Michelle like a human shield, not showing the nauseating pain that was eating him alive.

The man aimed his gun again frantically, seeing how Peter seemed unaffected by the fatal wound that should have had him bleeding out in seconds.

“What the…?” The grey-haired man backed away, tripping over a root. His reloaded his shotgun and aimed it at Peters chest.

Peter had nearly accepted his fate when a familiar nose filled his ears. But he didn’t trust his ears, wouldn’t believe it till he saw it. Maybe it was the blood loss? The fever? The concussion?

His vision swam and he could sense rushed movement and loud noises around him, but it was all too much, the inputs layering over each other so he couldn’t make out what was up and what was down. But then a voice cut through the jumbled sounds.

“ _Kid…?_ ”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this was supposed to be the final chapter but it ended up being wayy longer than expected, so I'm slitting it into two.
> 
> Happy New Year everyone!

_“Kid…?”_

Whether it was real or not, the voice instantly made him feel safe, and loved, and hopeful. Every inch of him screamed that this wasn’t real, telling him he had to snap out of it and stop the bleeding that was slowly coating his back.

Peter dragged his eyes up from the ground and gazed at the man he had missed more than he could comprehend.

Mr stark was staring at him, his suit encased around him but his face plate off, with a hand outstretched. He looked worried – scratch that – he looked completely terrified, his eyes wide and face pale with concern.

“Mr Stark?” Peter murmured; his words barely coherent. He just had to make sure it was really him, and not some messed up hallucination his mind had conjured up.

“Yeah, Pete, it’s me.” Tony’s voice cracked as he took careful steps to where Peter was swaying on his feet.

At hearing those words, it was like a switch was flipped as Peter’s body relented to the darkness that had been slowly consuming him. He tried to stop his muscles from giving in, tried to keep going just a little longer, but suddenly a wave of dizziness had the ground speeding towards his face.

Peter’s world went black – and this time, he didn’t fight it.

***

“Boss, I have detected six heat signatures within a one-mile radius. One appears to match the description of Peter Parker.”

For a moment Tony lost control of the suite, dipping a couple of metres as his surprise had his mind going blank. He steadily regained his posture as he soared through the air, his heart thumping as he took in what Friday said.

“Where, Fri?” He choked out. This was the first solid piece of hope he had gotten in weeks – the first thing to suggest that Peter was still alive, and his endless searching hadn’t been for nothing.

“Ahead of you, Boss. Would you like me to zoom in so can you see?” the A.I responded.

Tony paused, suddenly extremely scared. What if the heat signature _was_ Peter, but his body was now just a shell, harbouring a vicious monster? Tony didn’t think he would survive the image of Peter as a Growler.

“Yep.” Tony said eventually, despite the growing pit in his stomach that made him rethink eating lunch before he went out flying.

A small box in the corner of his vision appeared and it zoomed in, showing an image that was across the highway. The feed was grainy and poor quality due to the distance, but he could make out a group of people, standing opposite someone who was holding out an object of some sort – a gun, Tony realised.

A loud bang had Tony gasping in fright as the gun was fired, and the image was getting clearer. He was close enough to see the group without zooming in now, and he could make out the figure at the front hunched over someone else.

“Thrusters at maximum power, baby.” Tony ordered.

“Sure thing, Boss.” His speed immediately increased, and he slowly dropped to the ground, his metal armour making a clang as it hit the concrete. 

Tony could now see the person with the gun, a grey-haired man who looked a little older than him swung the weapon in his direction frantically, his eyes wide with panic. 

He ignored the group that he knew was behind him, knowing it was best to take care of the threat before assessing their situation. Tony raised his gauntlet and pointed at the man’s chest, powering up the charge.

To his relief, the man dropped the gun in terror and backed off clumsily, disappearing off into the trees till he couldn’t be seen. Hesitantly, Tony turned his head to the group and felt his veins turn to ice, his whole body freezing as he stopped breathing.

“ _Kid?..._ ”

It was unmistakably Peter. 

Tony was certain that if he ever saw him again, he would be instantly filled with a happiness that couldn’t be described. Oh, boy was he wrong. 

The blood was everywhere. It stained every part of his clothes, his brown curls clumped together by the red liquid that was matted in his hair and running down his face – speaking of which, was covered in nasty bruises and gashes. The boy’s gaze was on the ground, his eyes glassy like he wasn’t completely aware of his surroundings.

But then his head slowly lifted, till his broken, traumatised eyes reached his.

“Mr St’rk?” Peter’s voice was hoarse, and he could barely hear it, but Tony’s heart still dropped at hearing how wrecked he sounded.

“Yeah, Pete, it’s me.” He said in a soft voice that was very unlike him.

A girl stood next to him, her frizzy hair blowing against her light-brown skin that was also littered with small cuts. Her hand was on his shoulder, steadying him as she stared at Peter’s back, unmoving and frozen. She looked shell shocked.

Peter’s eyes rolled into the back of his head and his legs crumpled beneath him, his body falling to the ground without warning. The girl by him tried to reach out and catch him but his weight must have caught her off guard as she barely cushioned his fall.

Tony lunged forward to try catch him and managed to catch his head before it could smack against the road. It was then, when the kid was collapsed on his front, that he noticed the horrific bullet wound on his right shoulder, the blood gushing out if it and already pooling around his body. He couldn’t help the gasp that escaped him, immediately applying pressure to his back and hoped that it was slowing the bleeding.

The girl beside him was hyperventilating as her hand hovered over his head. More people were surrounding Peter, varying levels of panic on everyone’s faces.

“Oh my god.” Ned muttered under his breathe, not able to tear his eyes away from Peter’s lax face. He was standing to the side, useless, as his best friend bled out before his eyes.

Flash dropped to his knees beside Michelle who was already silently crying, her whole body shaking. “Shit.” He whispered to no one in particular. It was taking everything in him not to freak the _fuck_ out. He saw Mr Stark, both hands pressed against Peter’s shoulder. “What do we do?”

Tony pulled in a shaky breath. “Fri, send a med team – or Bruce - to my location _now_!” He ignored the boy that had spoken to him, whatever he said not processing in his brain.

Peter groaned, the sound pained and hoarse as he shifted slightly off the ground.

“Hey, Bud – wakey, wakey.” Tony patted his cheek lightly. “Come on. Rise and shine sleeping beauty!” Tony tried to mask his panicking with light words but knew they were to strained to come off as calm.

Peter’s head was lying on it’s side, his cheek resting against the concrete so he could still see Michele and Tony who were trying to coax him out of unconsciousness. His eyes fluttered open slowly, but they were clouded with unshed tears.

He felt the unbearable pain across his back straight away, the intense burning drowning out any other injuries. A choked yell burst past his lips and his fists clenched against the ground, the pain reaching a whole new level. He writhed on the floor, struggling away from the pain despite the numerous hands that were on him and the jumbled voices talking at him.

“Make it stop!” Peter shrieked through clenched teeth. “Please! It – it _hurts_ ” He sobbed into the ground.

“I know, Kid. I’m sorry. Help is on the way.” Tony muttered, feeling completely helpless as they waited. “Fri, how far is that Med Team?”

“Expected to arrive in one minute, thirty-two seconds, boss.” She replied instantly.

And sure enough, within moments, the hum of an engine reached his ears and he could see the Quintjet above, quickly approaching them and preparing to land.

Someone was trying to claw Peter away from his grasp and he tried to shrug them off, wanting to keep his focus on the bleeding boy in his lap.

“Tony, you need to let go!”

Tony knew that voice – Bruce Banner. 

“Took your damn time!” he yelled back, finally detaching himself from Peter who was struggling to pull in breathes as his eyes widened at the sudden amount of people surrounding him.

Tony stood back as the medics obscured his view of Peter, the other teenagers that were with him taking a step back. A hand on his shoulder had his heart leaping out of his chest as he jolted, the sudden contact surprising him.

Steve’s eyebrows had pulled together as he looked at Tony with a level of concern he hadn’t seen in a while. “Where’s the threat, Stark?” He said in his mission voice, quick and sharp.

“There, uh, there is no threat.” Tony winced at his stuttering. “Don’t get your panties in a twist, Capsicle.” The joke fell flat.

Steve didn’t seem convinced as he surveyed the situation efficiently, gripping his shield tightly.

Tony noticed his unease. “Seriously, Rogers. I sorted it – no threat.”

“Then, why is a kid bleeding out on the highway, Stark?” His voice was clipped, urgent.

Tony opened his mouth to reply but nothing came out as the gravity of the situation dawned him, turning his skin a sicky shade of green. He stared at Peter as Medics crouched around him, piercing his veins with needles and ripping his shirt open to reveal the mangled skin beneath. Peter was still awake and Tony couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing because he was in so much excruciating pain – but what if him falling unconscious meant he would never wake again? He could make out his hands loosely gripping at Bruce's wrists that were on his chest as he mumbled incoherent pleas.

“Christ, do you know this kid, tony? Who is he?” Steve was growing concerned at Tony’s unresponsiveness.

Still Tony said nothing, his eyes glazed as he stared at the group that was lifting Peter onto a stretcher.

Steve took a step closer, his hand returning to Tony’s shoulder. “Who is he, Tony?” His eyes were pleading with him, begging him to answer, even if it was a snarky comment or stupid nickname, just anything to show he was still with him. Sure, the two had their differences and didn’t always get along, but at the end of the day, they cared for each other.

“Peter Parker. Aka Spiderman.” Tony answered in a monotone voice, prepared for the lecture he knew he deserved.

Steve took a sharp intake of breath. “The guy in Spandex at the airport? _Fuck_ , Tony.”

“Language.” Tony forced a small smile.

Steve ignored the playful comment. “How old is he?”

“Seventeen.” Tony replied instantly. Just saying his age sent a sharp wave of fresh guilt through him “And before you say anything, I know that he is too young, I know that this all my fault and I shouldn’t have got him involved, I know it _all _, Steve. So just don’t start, not right now.”__

__Steve paused, thinking about his next words carefully. “I wasn’t going to say that. It’s clear you care for him. Besides, the kid is tough. He will make it through.”_ _

__Tony wasn’t so sure._ _

__***_ _

___Tap, tap, tap.__ _

__Tony thrummed his fingers against the flimsy plastic of the chair he sat in. Nervous energy was winding up his muscles tight, like an elastic band that had been pulled taught but denied a release. But with no where to go, and nothing to busy himself with, the energy ran down his arms and into the tips of his fingers. When they weren’t tapping rapidly against the armchair, they were running through his unwashed hair, or picking at the loose thread in his worn-out jeans._ _

__Peter had been in the emergency room, which Tony had been denied access too despite his continuous complaining, for over three hours. Every now and then, he would find himself pacing back and forth, occasionally peering through the tainted window of the operation theatre, only to regret it when he was confronted with images of Peter’s limp body surrounded by frantic doctors._ _

__“Tony.”_ _

__He whirled round at the sound of his name, tearing his eyes away from the operation theatre he had found himself involuntarily glancing into again._ _

__“ _Tony_.” Pepper’s voice was thick with concern as she looked into the tired, warn-down eyes of her husband. She walked towards him and thrust a steaming cup of coffee towards him, holding her hands over his as he took it from her. “This isn’t your fault, you know that, right?”_ _

__Tony pinched the bridge of his nose a little too tight. “If I had gotten there just a little sooner, maybe -“_ _

__She cut off his words by placing a steady finger to his lips. “This wasn’t you fault.” Her tone was final, and she said it so sincerely that Tony almost believed her. _Almost._ “You should get some sleep.”_ _

__Tony snorted, puling out of her grip. “Pep, you and I both know that isn’t going to happen.”_ _

__Pepper rolled her eyes but smiled anyway. “You are impossible, Tony Stark. You know that?”_ _

__“But that’s why you love me.” He replied with a confident wink and smirk that didn’t reach his eyes._ _

__Pepper laughed for a moment, but then her eyes darkened, and her expression became sombre. “You need to talk to the other kids. They are freaking out.”_ _

__Tony’s face crumpled in confusion. “Other – what?”_ _

__“The _kids_ , Tony! Back on the highway! Ring any bells?”_ _

__“Oh, the kids!” Tony said in realisation. To be honest he had completely forgotten that their were other teenagers with Peter when he found him, too mixed up in the stress of Peter being hurt that he hadn’t stopped to think who they were. “Do I have to?” He whined, mimicking how Morgan would stretch out her words when she didn’t want to eat all her greens._ _

__Pepper gave him a bored expression, crossing her arms. “Yes. Now _go_.”_ _

__“Fine.” He grumbled out, stamping his foot in frustration. “Find me the second anything changes with Peter.”_ _

__“You know I will.” She said, giving him a quick peck on cheek before he rounded a corner, his feet slightly dragging across the floor._ _

__***_ _

__Flash hated the way his eyes were welling up with tears even though he begged them not too. His hand shot up unnaturally fast to swipe at his cheek, catching the tear that had barely contacted his skin. Michelle quirked an eyebrow in his direction but didn’t say anything._ _

__Aiden sat off to the side away from the group, his head in his hands. He hadn’t uttered a word since they reached the safety zone and barely acknowledged the medical team that did a routine check up on everyone. All in all, they were battered and worn down, but they would all be ‘good as new’ within a few weeks._ _

__When Ned wasn’t rambling nervously, he was biting his nails, and when he wasn’t doing that he was pacing the room – well, he had been until Flash had snapped at him saying _’if you don’t stop pacing, I’m going to shove your head through a wall.’__ _

__To say everyone was a little on edge was an understatement. They had been mindlessly waiting in this white waiting room for what felt like days, and there was still no news about Peter. The last they saw of him was when they were wheeling his unconscious body into the emergency room._ _

__“Shit. There are more of you than I remembered.” Tony said as he waltzed into the waiting room, putting on his best façade._ _

__Ned and Michelle were on their feet in an instant, walking towards Tony before he could finish speaking. Flash suddenly becoming alert but remained rooted to the plastic chair he had situated, and Aiden didn’t even glance up._ _

__Ned was the first to speak. “Peter – is he okay? Do you know if – “_ _

__“I don’t know anymore than you.” Tony cut in, not in the mood to entertain the Kid’s rambling._ _

__“Then why are you here?” Michelle said, her exhaustion making her even more impatient and grumpy than usual._ _

__Tony looked at her, taken back by her rudeness. “Seems like you have had a rough day, so I’m going to let that one slide. Anyway – “_ _

__“Look, Stark,” Michelle could feel her anger simmering beneath her skin, “I’m not in the mood for any of this small talk bullshit, so if you could either leave or find out what’s happening to Peter, that would be great –_ _

__“ _Anyway_ ,” Tony bit back the urge to match her anger, but knew now was not the time to start an argument with a teenager. “I came to make sure you were all okay. If you need food, water, clothes, a place to sleep I can get that for you.”_ _

__“Is there anyway we can try contact our families?” Flash spoke up._ _

__Tony rubbed at his forehead. “Unless they are in this safety zone, then I’m afraid not. We lost contact with the other bases a while back. It’s a miracle we even have power.” He paused before seeing Aiden slumped over the corner, not even noticing he was there. “What’s wrong with him?”_ _

__Michelle’s eyes flickered briefly to where Aiden sat before she looked back at Tony and her gaze hardened. “The apocalypse hasn’t been all rainbows and daisies for everyone!” She snapped._ _

__Tony was about return a smart quip when Bruce rushed into the waiting room, a clip board in hand. “Peter?” He urged._ _

__“We have just taken him out of surgery and he is in intensive care. We lost him a couple of times on the operating room but he is past the worst of it and I think he is going to be okay.” Bruce said, using his doctor voice which was informative and to the point._ _

__A collective sigh of relief sounded around the room as everyone visibly relaxed._ _

__"Give me a medical report.” Tony ordered him._ _

__Bruce pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose, a nervous tick he had found himself doing recently. “Tony, I really don’t think that’s a good idea – “_ _

__“I need to know, please.”_ _

__Bruce relented and flipped over a page on his clipboard. “The main concern was the bullet wound in his shoulder. Peter has such strong muscles that it didn’t go all the way through, so we had to dig it out.”_ _

__Tony was starting to regret insisting he here the full list, his stomach already clenching painfully._ _

__“He also had a stab wound above his right hip that had become infected but with the right treatment it shouldn’t be a problem. There was a hairline fracture in his fibula which I’m hoping won’t need to be set, thanks to his enhanced healing. Majority of his ribs had been broken or shattered, but we were incredibly lucky that none punched his lungs.”_ _

__Ned couldn’t help but shoot an angry glare towards Aiden who still hadn’t turned around. He had hunched further in on himself at the words though, so Ned assumed he was listening._ _

__“Multiple bruises and contusions, as well as a small break in the jaw. These seemed to be older, likely the result of a beating.”_ _

__Tony gulped at his words. What on earth had happened to his kid?_ _

__“I think that’s about the extent of it. I’m confident he will make a full recovery.” Bruce nodded towards Tony who quietly thanked him, before turning around to return to Peter’s room._ _

__Tony stayed silent until he couldn’t keep the burning question from bursting past his lips. “What the fuck happened?”_ _

__***_ _

__It had been a week since Peter had been wheeled out of the operation room. A week since his heart had stopped beating – twice._ _

__He couldn’t remember much from the first few times he had woken up, his thoughts a jumbled mess of words and images, but he could still sense that people were with him. Slowly, each time he woke he got a little more coherent, and the fog clogging his brain seemed to clear ever so slightly. He could recall bits and pieces of conversations he had had with Mr Stark or one of his friends, but mostly he remembered the warm feeling of knowing they were close rather than what was actually said._ _

__Tony had told him how they didn’t have contact with May, but when he had last heard from her she was at a safety zone in Ohio, helping the sick and injured. That was only a week ago, and Peter felt an imaginable relief knowing she was probably just fine._ _

__“You can’t stack a plus four with a plus two! I don’t make the rules that’s just how it works!”_ _

__“I’m Tony Stark; I make my own rules.” Tony smirked as he placed down the plus four Uno card, despite Ned’s noise of disagreement._ _

__Michelle peered over the top of her Uno cards that she was holding close to her chest, making sure no one could see her hand. “I’m not usually one to abide by social constructs, but I’m going to have to agree with Ned on this one.”_ _

__“Oh, come one, guys. Rules were literally made to be broken.” Flash leaned back in his armchair as he took Tony’s side. He didn’t really care about what rules they went by, but who wouldn’t choose to team up with _freaking_ Ironman?_ _

__“How can you say that?” Ned squeaked. “It’s literally in the handbook!”_ _

__“What handbook?” Flash said incredulously_ _

__“The Uno handbook!”_ _

__Peter laughed from where he sat propped up in his hospital bed, shuffling through his remaining Uno cards. Not being able to leave his bed was torture, all his pent up energy begging to be released, but moving slightly still sent shockwaves of pain radiating through his body. “I don’t think that exists, Ned.”_ _

__“You can’t be taking his side, Peter? After all we have been through!” Ned put a hand over his heart, dramatically._ _

__“Wow, that’s gotta’ sting.” Tony said smugly, propping his feet up on the small coffee table that held their drinks._ _

__“Dude, this isn’t about friendship. This is about the very serious logistics of a card game. One that I might lose if I side with you.” Peter reasoned._ _

__“I knew there was a reason I kept you around, Underoos.” Tony said, ruffling Peter’s hair._ _

__“So, it’s decided? Rules are officially being altered so you _can_ stack a plus two and a plus four.” Flash concluded._ _

__“Why not?” Michelle agreed, not really interested._ _

__The others nodded their head in agreement as Ned became even more dramatic as he protested. “What, no! I will not stand for this – you are all conspiring against me! You wouldn’t change the laws of physics just because you wanted – how is Uno any different?”_ _

__At that they all burst out with laughter, wiping tears away from their eyes as Ned faked a tantrum._ _

__As their giggles died down, Peter spoke up. “Other than Ned, are we all happy with the new rules?”_ _

__It was then that Steve Rogers leaned forward and raised a hand. “I don’t really understand any of the rules.” He said as he looked between his own Uno cards and the small pile on Peter’s lap in confusion. “Peter, can I join your team?”_ _

__“Sure.” Peter replied, internally screaming that Captain America wanted to be on his Uno team. He angled the cards so Steve could see them, pointing at a red five he was planning on placing next._ _

__Ned pointed at them. “You can’t team up! That’s cheating! That’s even more against the rules than stacking plus twos and plus fours!”_ _

__“It’s all good. Spangles here barely counts as another player.” Tony said coolly._ _

__“Hey!” Steve weakly defended._ _

__Tony looked at him with a bored expression. “What’s the aim of the game, Captain Smart-ass?”_ _

__Steve paused. “To, uh, get the most cards?”_ _

__“See?” Tony looked towards Ned, who seemed to accept that as an answer._ _

__It was a relief that Peter’s recovery had been going smoothly and he was no longer bottled to the brim with heavy painkillers. He had been spending most of his time hanging out with various people that had visited him, playing card games or discussing science, and trying his hardest not to think about _you know what_. The thing that threatened to suffocate him from the inside out and empty his stomach contents onto the floor._ _

__And though he was known for being an overthinker, he was doing good at shoving down any painful memories that threatened to resurface. But really, he knew he was going to have to face them eventually._ _

__It was obvious that Tony was itching to ask him a hundred questions but was trying to avoid pushing him, tiptoeing around him like a piece of glass that might shatter._ _

__Still, he savoured the small moments like this, knowing, deep down, it wasn’t going to last forever._ _


	12. Chapter 12

Peter was finally starting to feel like himself again, and it felt _great_.

Sure, particular spots still ached, and he found himself getting tired after too much physical exertion, but things were starting to look up.

He sat on his hospital bed, tired after a long hour of physical therapy as he let Bruce do one of his check ups he had been doing every other day. Peter couldn’t help but shiver slightly, Bruce pressing a stethoscope to his bare chest.

Though this routine didn’t usually bother him, he did regret letting Tony stay in the room, unlike before when he insisted, he leave. Peter had never scarred before, his healing factor taking care of injuries straight away and leaving no evidence of it in the first place, but with how malnourished and dehydrated he had been, combined with his lack of sleep, it had taken a tremendous toll on his body.

Even though he didn’t say anything, he could feel Tony’s concerned eyes staring at each scrape that hadn’t completely gone away, and he shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. This was exactly why he didn’t want Tony to see in the first place. He knew he would overreact when it really wasn’t a big deal.

Bruce tidied up his equipment and mumbled a goodbye as he left the room, leaving the pair in an awkward silence. Not knowing what to do, Peter reached over to his discarded shirt, about to pull it over his head when a hand clasped around his wrist.

“Kid…” Tony began, unable to find the words. Peter did look better, he really did. He was gaining back the muscle mass he had lost, and the colour had returned back to his cheeks, but seeing all the scars underneath painfully reminded him that what happened was still affecting him, on display forever.

“Mr Stark, it’s not a big deal.” Peter insisted, looking at his mentor.

“It’s not a big deal my ass.” Tony replied with a small scoff. “You have to tell me what happened.”

They hadn’t had that ‘talk’ yet, and to be honest, Peter had been avoiding it at all costs. He didn’t want to relive that nightmare.

“Why?” Peter said, throwing his hands up, exasperated.

“Because I’m the adult, and I said so.” That wasn’t why, but it was all Tony could manage. He just _had_ to know. Over the past couple of weeks his mind had been replaying horrific scenarios in his head, each one more gruesome and more heart-breaking than the last. Besides, how was Peter meant to work through his trauma if he didn’t talk about it?

Peter seemed to understand, because he relented. “Fine. Just don’t freak out.”

Tony sucked in a breath. “That’s reassuring.” He muttered.

“We took shelter at this abandoned store, the one close to Midtown. It wasn’t too bad, we had food and water and a place to sleep.”

Tony released a breath. _So far so good._

“After our first night, I think, this gang came in and was all like ‘ _you better clear out before I bash your head in’_.” Peter mimicked the voice of the leader, trying to deepen it which earned a chuckle from Tony. “But I wasn’t going to let them just take over our base, obviously. So, they beat the crap out of me.”

“What? Did you not fight back? I don’t know if you remember, Kid, but you have superpowers.”

“I did! And I was doing pretty good at first, but there were like a dozen of them – and they kept hitting me with pipes and bats which is, like, _so_ unfair!”

Tony winced at the mental image of Peter being pummelled by a group of thugs, using pipes to lay into him. He shook his head.

“Anyway, turns out they had guns, and they nearly shot Ned, which was scary, but that’s when Flash came in and _pow_! He shot their leader. The others ran away after that.”

“Jeez, Pete. Seems like you all had a blast.”

“Oh, Mr Stark, that’s just the beginning.” Peter went on to give him a detailed account of what had happened the last few weeks; how they met Aiden, him hearing the message from Tony through Karen, the explosion that destroyed their van. He deliberately left out a few major things, like the existence of Imani because if told him about her then he would ask what happened to her and he would have to tell him how he snapped her neck - _crack_ \- and how he couldn’t save her and he would hate him and – 

“Kid? You space out?” Tony looked at him with worry, noticing the glassy look in Peters eyes before he snapped out of it, shaking his head and smiling.

After a hearty lunch and lengthy game of Mario Kart with Ned, Michelle and Flash, Peter and Tony decided to take a casual walk around the grounds of the compound they had been staying in. Peter was sceptical about going outside at first, but Tony was quick to assure him that he had hundreds of drones monitoring the area, so any Growlers would be detected immediately.

Peter breathed in the fresh air, feeling relaxation wash over him as he took in the sight of the beautiful light that stretched out before him. The two walked across the rocky path that outlined the lake, talking and joking like they used to.

They were deep in conversation, Peter rambling on about what would happen if he consumed a load of stimulant drugs. “See, Ned thinks that it would enhance all my powers, like steroids for superheroes, but I reckon I would just get super hyper for an hour, and then pass out – or die.”

“Wait… You didn’t try this, did you?” Tony said, dreading the answer as he imagined the kid willingly giving himself and overdose for a ‘science experiment’.

“No, when we floated the idea MJ slapped me and said we were idiots.” Peter looked slightly dejected.

Tony laughed, relived. “I like that girl, MJ. She’s feisty.”

“Yeah, she is.” Peter muttered, his cheeks growing red and he looked down at his shoes.

Stopping in his tracks, Tony turned to face him, gasping. “You like her!” He accused.

Peter blanched. “What? Uh- no – well, okay, _yes_ but – “

“Peter Benjamin Parker, do not lie to me.”

“Fine, we kissed!” Peter spluttered, turning to face Tony, utterly embarrassed.

“Way to go, Kid!” Tony cheered. Suddenly, his face paled as a thought occurred to him. “Wait – you didn’t have some end of the world sex, I hope, because – “

“Stop, stop, stop!” Peter waved his hands, finding this conversation far too awkward. “No, nothing like that!”

“We don’t need to have the safe sex talk, do we?” Tony said, smiling at Peter’s embarrassment, more to tease him that anything.

“Mr _Stark!_ ” Peter whined, turning around to carry on walking across the path.

Tony caught up to him and gave him a playful nudge in the side, but the action caused something in Peter’s pocket to shift and come tumbling out.

With fast reflexes, Peter moved to catch it, his hand shooting out in blind panic. But he wasn’t fast enough, and it cracked against the pavement, sending a jolt through Peter’s body.

For a moment Peter only stared at the light blue Frozen watch that lay on the ground, disconnected from the rest of the world. The glass casing had broken on impact with the ground, the frayed and blood-stained fabric standing out against the grey floor.

The watch had cracked just like her neck. _Crack._

It had been snapped just like the bones in her body had been under Peters hands. 

_Crack. Crack. Crack._

He could still feel it, feel _her_ , lying boneless and dead in his arms.

_Imani_

Just the name was enough to painfully suck all the air out of him, leave him a crumbling mess of guilt and grief. Peter stumbled to the ground, scrambling to pick up the watch, _her_ watch.

He vigorously rubbed at the cracked screen, trying to smooth the spider-webs away because first he had broken her neck and now, he had broken her watch. Peter hadn’t even realised the broken noises he could hear were coming from him, tearing out of his throat in a half sob, half scream.

He was hyperventilating as he clutched the watch so tightly it was just breaking more under his grip, the plastic cutting into his skin. 

“No, no, no, _please_.” Peter sobbed into the ground, trying to drown out the _crack, crack, crack_ of her neck that was deafening in his mind. His hands smashed against the concrete, it caving in under his fists. He hit it over and over again till his knuckles bled and pain blossomed across is hands, anything to stop feeling her bones breaking.

The pain seemed to bring him back because it was only then that he registered someone had been touching him, begging him to come back. And finally, he did. His whaling died down to quiet whimpers as he lent against the body supporting him, grounding him.

“Mr Stark?” Peter croaked, because he knew it was him, it had to be him.

“You back with me, Kid?” Tony’s soft voice calmed him instantly.

This was out of Tony’s skill set. He was pretty good at building things, sticking together the right bits of technology to invent something new. He was decent at beating the crap out of aliens in a metal can. He wasn’t too bad at being a husband, remembering the important dates, saying the right things. But emotions? Traumatised Kids?

Yep, this was far, _far_ out of his comfort zone.

One-minute Peter had been fine, and the next he was on the floor, wildly bashing his fists into the ground as he plunged into a panic attack scary enough to rival his own. So, he did what he knew.

He held Peter, talking in a hushed tone as he let him cry, knowing Peter liked the physical contact. He had no idea what set it off, but Tony was getting the sneaking suspicion that Peter hadn’t told him about everything from their time apart.

“You don’t understand. It’s my fault.” Peter whimpered, pulling away from Toy now that he was finally back to himself. Feeling emotionally and physically exhausted, he slumped onto a parked bench and put his head in his hands.

“What is, Buddy?” Tony said gently, sitting down next to him.

“I killed her.”

Tony froze. “Peter…”

“I killed her.” Peter repeated, angrily this time. “I did it! It was me! I snapped her neck!” 

Tony reached forward and trying to pry away Peter hands that were roughly tugging at his curls. “Slow down. Breathe.”

“I didn’t mean to, I swear! But suddenly her body was limp and her head was in my hands because I killed her! “

“Pete.”

“ – and I can’t stop hearing it, Mr Stark, I could _feel_ her bones crunch beneath my hands and every time I close my eyes she’s there but it isn’t her, it isn’t, because she had turned into one of those _monsters_ , but I still killed her – “

“Peter!” Tony grabbed his hands with force, and finally Peter’s eyes shot up to look at him. “Breathe.”

Peter nodded slowly; matching Tony’s deep breathes. He was silent for a few minutes, before looking up at him, broken. “She was only eight.”

Tony closed his eyes, defeated. He didn’t know what had happened, but he knew it was bad, and he knew Peter didn’t deserve it. “Kid, what happened?”

“I didn’t tell you before, but we didn’t find Aiden alone. He had a little sister, Imani.” His voice cracked as he said it out loud, because he hadn’t actually said her name since. “She asked me to fix her watch because it ran out of battery, and when I did, she was so happy.”

Peter gulped, a fresh near batch of tears trickling down his puffy cheeks. “She wanted us to play hide and seek, and I should have said no, I should have –“ Peter broke off, not sure what to say. “But everyone was so beat up and sad and we just wanted to do something _fun_ for a change. Imani deserved to play games like a kid, because she is a kid, but then we split up and we lost the others.

“There were growlers everywhere. We were so close, I nearly got all of them. But one bit her.”

Tony placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze to give Peter the encouragement he needed to carry on.

“I held her while she died. I told her it would all be okay, and I – I promised I wouldn’t let go. I _promised_ her!” Peter was sobbing between his words, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop. “Suddenly she was fighting me, trying to bite me and I didn’t even realise I’d done it till it was too late. I snapped her neck.”

“Oh god, Peter.” Tony said, trying not to cry himself.

“I got up and I left.” Peters words had turned almost robotic. “I had to tell Aiden that she was gone, I had to tell her brother what I did. So, he hit me. A lot. And I deserved it.”

“Kid, none of this is your fault. She was already gone.” Tony pulled him into a tight hug. “Fuck, I’m so sorry I didn’t find you sooner. I love you Kiddo.”

“I love you too, Mr Stark.”

***

“I’m so sorry.”

Aiden finally looked up, his hands trailing alone the side of the wooden bench.

Peter had seen him sitting by Imani’s memorial, the one Mr Stark had insisted they build so it overlooked the lake. He had to admit it was beautiful, decorated with colourful flowers that were added to each day, with the words _’Imani, the bravest girl to ever live. Forever in our hearts.’_ engraved into the stone. A small glass shelter stretched over the top to protect it, but still so it could see the stars.

Everyone had been there a lot, adding to the pile of trinkets and just sitting for a while. Peter supposed it was a way of feeling closer to her.

It had taken Aiden a few weeks till he was ready to see it, but he was glad he did and found himself their everyday. It was… peaceful.

Peter had watched Aiden from a distance when he first visited the memorial. They hadn’t spoke since the day she died, barely looked at each other. Peter told himself that Aiden wasn’t ready, that he just needed more time, that he would just upset him further. But he also knew that he was lying to himself; the guilt he had been supressing felt like a burning pain whenever he looked at the older boy.

But finally, when he saw Aiden sitting down by the memorial at the same time he did every day, he plucked up the courage to talk to him.

“Peter.” Aiden didn’t know what else to say.

Peter was standing across the grass, not wanting to invade Aiden’s privacy by taking a step forward. For a moment they both said nothing. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you for the last month, but I guess I was scared."

Aiden chuckled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “You worried I might beat you up again?” He phrased it as a joke, but the guilt of what he had done weighed down his words.

“No! That’s not what I meant - of course not.” Peter spluttered. “I deserved that.”

“No, you didn’t.” Aiden said with finality. “What happened to Imani – it wasn’t your fault.”

“How can you say that? I killed her, Aiden.” _I snapped her neck._

“She was already dead. That bastard of a disease had taken her long before you did.”

“I’m still sorry.” Peter’s voice cracked.

“I know. Thank you.”

“What for?”

“For being with her when she passed. She wasn’t alone.” Aiden turned his attention back to the flowers along her grave.

“She was never alone.”

Aiden smiled at him and for the first time in a while, it was genuine and real and easy. Because Peter was right - Imani hadn’t been and still wasn’t alone. 

And neither was he.

***

“Right, so, Ned. You got the snacks?” Peter said, looking up from his clipboard.

“Oh yeah, baby.” Ned replied smugly, dumping a bagful of junk food onto the blanket in the centre. “Rummaged through every vending machine there is and got all the essentials.”

Aiden studied the overly large food pile. “Did you get Cheetos? The flaming hot ones?”

“Uh, duh…” Ned chuckled as he shook his head, tossing Aiden a bag.

“MJ, did you get the sleeping bags?” Peter carried on.

“Check.” She held up a few blankets to confirm.

Tony leaned forward into the group of teenagers, sticking out a finger. “By the way, just so we are clear, you,” he pointed to Peter, “and you,” he pointed to Michelle, “will be sleeping very far apart. There will be no funny business while you are under my roof. Or… tent, rather.”

Peter went bright red immediately. “Mr Stark!” 

“What?” Tony shrugged, finding making the kid embarrassed far too amusing. “I was a horny teenager once. I know what you all are like.”

“Mr Stark!” Peter squeaked again to which Tony laughed, slapping a hand against his knee.

They had planned the camping trip a week prior now that it was warm enough to stay out at night. Well, they called it a camping trip, but really it was just them setting up a comically large tent on the grounds of the safety zone, on a nice path of grass that overlooked the lake. Going too far out was a big no-no due to Growlers still wondering the streets but staying within the range of Tony’s drones would be safe.

Peter saw Flash jogging over towards the group, a stack of board games balancing between his hands. He emptied them onto the floor once inside the tent.

“Sup, dudes! Let’s get this party rolling. Flash is in the house!” He exclaimed. He went to lightly smack the back of Peters head playfully, when Peter dodged out the way of it at the last second, catching his hand and smirking. “No fair.” Flash mumbled but laughed anyway.

Peter peered around the group. “Where’s Steve? He is coming, right?”

Tony mouthed dropped open. “You have known Steve for, what, two months? I’ve known you for two years and I’m still _‘Mr Stark’_.” Tony imitated him in a high pitch voice.

“I do not sound like that!” Peter laughed. “And anyway, calling you Tony would just be… weird.” Peter over-exaggerated a full body shiver. “It’s not a big deal.”

“ _It’s not a big deal._ ” Tony mimicked him in the same squeaky voice, but then huffed a laugh and reached over to ruffle Peter’s hair.

Steve joined them a few minutes later, along with a few other Avengers who were fond of the kids and decided to tag along. The group alternated between playing competitive games of football out on the grass, getting way to aggressive as they worked their way through a few board games and stuffing their faces full of unhealthy food that Tony claimed was ‘shaving a few years off of his life-expectancy’.

After that they all laid out on the grass in front of their tent, tired and content, looking out on the lake ahead of them as the sun slowly dipped behind the trees. It created a warm orange glow that sparkled in the water, and it reminded Peter of the fairy lights that they had strung up in the store. Suddenly Peter realised that even in the apocalypse, the world wasn’t completely void of beauty.

When he closed his eyes, he thought back on the last few weeks. But for the first time, instead of the traumatic sights that made him dread sleep, he saw everything that had given him hope, strength and happiness. 

He heard the music that had played as him, Ned and Michelle had danced and laughed, safe in their tiny corner of the world, their body’s swaying together like they had no care in the world.

Peter felt his hand collide with Flash’s as they high-fived, too caught up in their moment of victory to pretend they didn’t care for each other.

He felt his lips brush against Michelle’s, the sensation sending sparks of excitement through him as he breathed in her comforting scent.

_He head Imani’s laugh._

Child-like and innocent and everything the world needed more of; the way she giggled as Aiden had slung her over his shoulder fondly, the way she squealed when Peter had presented her the fixed watch, the way she smiled brighter than anyone just because she could.

Imani was taken from them too soon. But she would always be with them.

“Hey Loser, you okay?” Michelle noticed he had zoned out from the conversation, gazing out at the lake in front of them instead.

Peter looked over to her, a genuine smile on his lips as he took her hands in his.

“Yeah, I think I am.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end!
> 
> Thanks for all the support on this fic - I really enjoyed writing it and I appreciate you all!
> 
> Let me know what you guys thought :)))
> 
> Side note: I've just started writing another fic - 'Just a mouse stuck in a glue trap' - and if you liked this, you should check that out too!
> 
> Thanks for reading!!!!!


End file.
